Polymer‐based Scaffold Designs For In Situ Vascular Tissue Engineering: Controlling Recruitment and Differentiation Behavior of Endothelial Colony Forming Cells

Abstract

In situ vascular tissue engineering has been proposed as a promising approach to fulfill the need for small-diameter blood vessel substitutes. The approach comprises the use of a cell-free instructive scaffold to guide and control cell recruitment, differentiation, and tissue formation at the locus of implantation. Here we review the design parameters for such scaffolds, with special emphasis on differentiation of recruited ECFCs into the different lineages that constitute the vessel wall. Next to defining the target properties of the vessel, we concentrate on the target cell source, the ECFCs, and on the environmental control of the fate of these cells within the scaffold. The prospects of the approach are discussed in the light of current technical and biological hurdles.

Elastic, double-layered poly (l-lactide-co-ϵ-caprolactone) scaffold for long-term vascular reconstruction

“…8 Synthetic vascular prostheses, such as Dacron fabric grafts and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), have been developed to supplement the limited supply of native graft materials. 7,17 Compliance mismatch between a native artery and an artificial graft is known to cause a graft failure during a prolonged implantation of an artificial graft. [9][10][11][12] Early thrombosis, the major cause of graft occlusion, is the principal cause of cardiovascular graft failures.…”

Matrix Production and Organization by Endothelial Colony Forming Cells in Mechanically Strained Engineered Tissue Constructs

“…ECFCs have been proposed as a potential cell source for in situ cardiovascular TE [15], [16], [17] because they express haematopoietic markers as well as endothelial markers [18]. Laminar shear stress on ECFCs in 2D has been thoroughly investigated: it differentiates ECFCs towards the endothelial phenotype, as assessed by the anti-thrombogenic potential of ECFCs [19], [20] and the achievement of mature endothelial cell markers [21] with an arterial-like phenotype [22].…”

Design and fabrication of scaffold-based tissue engineering

“…To achieve widespread routine clinical application, TE constructs must be reduced to basic crucial properties ( = as easy to handle as possible), involve minimal post-processing after fabrication and must be able to be manufactured in a reproducible, controlled process at economical costs and speed. Simplifying our TE approaches as much as possible and using the body's endogenous healing capacity for an in situ TE are current challenges in this field of research [11][12][13][14]. For TE scaffolds in particular, we need to develop biomimetic scaffold designs that enable and promote stepwise remodelling of the surrounding tissues including the newly formed extracellular matrix (ECM).…”