title: Micropatterning electrospun scaffolds to create intrinsic vascular networks.
abstract: Sufficient vascularization is critical to sustaining viable tissue-engineered (TE) constructs after implantation. Despite significant progress, current approaches lack suturability, porosity, and biodegradability, which hinders rapid perfusion and remodeling in vivo. Consequently, TE vascular networks capable of direct anastomosis to host vasculature and immediate perfusion upon implantation still remain elusive. Here, a hybrid fabrication method is presented for micropatterning fibrous scaffolds that are suturable, porous, and biodegradable. Fused deposition modeling offers an inexpensive and automated approach to creating sacrificial templates with vascular-like branching. By electrospinning around these poly(vinyl alcohol) templates and dissolving them in water, microvascular patterns were transferred to fibrous scaffolds. Results indicated that these scaffolds have sufficient suture retention strength to permit direct anastomosis in future studies. Vascularization of these scaffolds is demonstrated by in vitro endothelialization and perfusion.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA.
authors.forename: Eric M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Jeffries
authors.forename: Shintaro
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Kee-Won
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Jimmy
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Clampffer
authors.forename: Hiroyuki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ijima
authors.forename: Yadong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D004727:Endothelium / Q000378:metabolism; D061307:Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells / Q000166:cytology; D006801:Humans; D055595:Mechanical Phenomena; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D055616:Microtechnology / Q000379:methods*; D018919:Neovascularization, Physiologic; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*
keywords: 3D printing; additive manufacturing; electrospinning; endothelial cells; microcirculation