Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Human umbilical cord cells for cardiovascular tissue engineering: a comparative study.

Alexander Kadner1, Gregor Zund, Christine Maurus

  • 1Clinic for Cardiovascular Surgery, University Hospital, Raemistrasse 100, CH 8091 Zurich, Switzerland. a.kadner@web.de

European Journal of Cardio-Thoracic Surgery : Official Journal of the European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery
|March 24, 2004
PubMed
Summary

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Small Diameter Vascular Grafts Made in Minutes.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2026
Same author

Anatomic Versus Physiologic Repair in Congenitally Corrected Transposition: A Propensity-Matched European Multicentre Study.

European journal of cardio-thoracic surgery : official journal of the European Association for Cardio-thoracic Surgery·2026
Same author

Cardiovascular stent technologies for coronary and valvular heart disease: the potential of 3D printing for stent fabrication.

Nature reviews. Cardiology·2026
Same author

MSC Origin and Biomechanical Conditioning Determine ECM Maturation in Tissue-Engineered Matrix.

Biomedicines·2026
Same author

Model Choice and Interpretation in Coronary Tissue Engineering: Still More Questions Than Answers?

JACC. Basic to translational science·2026
Same author

Functional and biochemical biomarkers of cardiac graft quality measured during normothermic ex situ heart perfusion in a porcine model of donation after circulatory death.

American journal of transplantation : official journal of the American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons·2025

Human umbilical cord cells offer a promising alternative for cardiovascular tissue engineering, providing a less invasive source for creating viable grafts. These juvenile cells demonstrate comparable growth and tissue formation to adult cells, avoiding risky surgical procedures.

Area of Science:

  • Biomaterials Science
  • Regenerative Medicine
  • Cardiovascular Engineering

Background:

  • Current cardiovascular tissue engineering relies on vascular myofibroblast cells, often sourced through invasive procedures.
  • This invasiveness poses challenges, particularly for pediatric patients requiring congenital cardiac defect repairs.
  • Alternative, less invasive autologous cell sources are needed for cardiovascular replacement development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate umbilical cord-derived cells as an alternative autologous cell source for cardiovascular tissue engineering.
  • To compare the growth, characteristics, and tissue-forming capabilities of umbilical cord artery, vein, and whole cord cells with traditional saphenous vein cells.
  • To assess the feasibility of engineering cardiovascular constructs using these alternative cell sources.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Methods:

  • Cells were isolated from human umbilical cord artery (UCA), umbilical cord vein (UCV), whole umbilical cord (UCC), and saphenous vein (VC).
  • Cells were expanded in culture, seeded onto bioabsorbable copolymer strips, and cultured in vitro for 28 days.
  • Characterization included flow cytometry, histology, immunohistochemistry, proliferation assays, electron microscopy (TEM, SEM), and mechanical testing.

Main Results:

  • UCA, UCV, and UCC exhibited excellent cell growth comparable to VC.
  • All tested cell types displayed myofibroblast-like morphology and expressed alpha-smooth muscle actin and vimentin.
  • Engineered constructs showed good tissue and extracellular matrix formation, including collagen and elastin, with comparable mechanical properties across all groups.

Conclusions:

  • Cardiovascular tissue engineering using UCA, UCV, and UCC is feasible in vitro.
  • Umbilical cord cells demonstrate comparable growth, morphology, and tissue formation to saphenous vein cells.
  • Whole umbilical cord cells (UCC) are a particularly attractive source due to availability and avoidance of invasive harvesting, offering benefits of juvenile cells.