Engineering biological-based vascular grafts using a pulsatile bioreactor

Much effort has been devoted to develop and advance the methodology to regenerate functional small-diameter arterial bypasses. In the physiological environment, both mechanical and chemical stimulation are required to maintain the proper development and functionality of arterial vessels1,2. Bioreactor culture systems developed by our group are designed to support vessel regeneration within a precisely controlled chemo-mechanical environment mimicking that of native vessels. Our bioreactor assembly and maintenance procedures are fairly simple and highly repeatable3,4. Smooth muscle cells (SMCs) are seeded onto a tubular polyglycolic acid (PGA) mesh that is threaded over compliant silicone tubing and cultured in the bioreactor with or without pulsatile stimulation for up to 12 weeks. There are four main attributes that distinguish our bioreactor from some predecessors. 1) Unlike other culture systems that simulate only the biochemical surrounding of native blood vessels, our bioreactor also creates a physiological pulsatile environment by applying cyclic radial strain to the vessels in culture. 2) Multiple engineered vessels can be cultured simultaneously under different mechanical conditions within a controlled chemical environment. 3) The bioreactor allows a mono layer of endothelial cells (EC) to be easily coated onto the luminal side of engineered vessels for animal implantation models. 4) Our bioreactor can also culture engineered vessels with different diameter size ranged from 1 mm to 3 mm, saving the effort to tailor each individual bioreactor to fit a specific diameter size. The engineered vessels cultured in our bioreactor resemble native blood vessels histologically to some degree. Cells in the vessel walls express mature SMC contractile markers such as smooth muscle myosin heavy chain (SMMHC)3. A substantial amount of collagen is deposited within the extracellular matrix, which is responsible for ultimate mechanical strength of the engineered vessels5. Biochemical analysis also indicates that collagen content of engineered vessels is comparable to that of native arteries6. Importantly, the pulsatile bioreactor has consistently regenerated vessels that exhibit mechanical properties that permit successful implantation experiments in animal models3,7. Additionally, this bioreactor can be further modified to allow real-time assessment and tracking of collagen remodeling over time, non-invasively, using a non-linear optical microscopy (NLOM)8. To conclude, this bioreactor should serve as an excellent platform to study the fundamental mechanisms that regulate the regeneration of functional small-diameter vascular grafts.