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

Novel geometries for tissue-engineered tendonous collagen constructs.

Yaling Shi1, Lawrence Rittman, Ivan Vesely

  • 1Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, USA.

Tissue Engineering
|September 26, 2006
PubMed
Summary

Tissue engineering of heart valves shows promise. Researchers created strong, aligned collagen fiber bundles in vitro, demonstrating potential for fabricating composite valve structures.

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

Independent proviral and antiviral host factors recognize the same capsid protein in divergent human herpesviruses.

PLoS pathogens·2026
Same author

The role of chest X-ray in tuberculosis detection for high school students in China: a cross-sectional study.

Scientific reports·2025
Same author

MTHFR and ABCB1 polymorphisms associated with toxicity in hematological malignancies patients receiving high dose methotrexate.

Scientific reports·2025
Same author

Underestimated latent tuberculosis infection burden among school contacts in China: a cross-sectional study.

Archives of public health = Archives belges de sante publique·2025
Same author

Addressing the burden and detection gap of latent tuberculosis infection in schoolchildren and adolescents in China: a cross-sectional study.

BMC infectious diseases·2024
Same author

A novel quantitative real-time PCR with the <i>GAPDH</i> reference gene for peste des petits ruminants.

Veterinarni medicina·2024

Area of Science:

  • Biomaterials Science
  • Tissue Engineering
  • Cardiovascular Research

Background:

  • Current mechanical and bioprosthetic heart valves have performance limitations.
  • Tissue-engineered heart valves require complex microstructures mimicking native valves, including layered topology and collagen networks.
  • Developing functional components of aortic valve cusps separately in vitro is a key strategy.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To engineer more complex collagenous structures for heart valve tissue engineering.
  • To investigate the effect of construct geometry on mechanical strength and in vitro integration.

Main Methods:

  • Fabrication of collagen fiber bundles using directed collagen gel contraction with neonatal rat aortic smooth muscle cells and type I collagen.
  • Casting collagen gels into rectangular or branched wells with porous end holders to allow controlled contraction.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Culturing pairs of constructs in contact to assess in vitro integration and bonding strength.

    • Main Results:

    • Highly compacted and aligned collagen fiber bundles formed after 6-8 weeks of culture.
    • Linear constructs with an 8:1 aspect ratio were significantly stronger than those with a 2:1 aspect ratio (298 kPa vs. 152 kPa).
    • Branching reduced mechanical strength; constructs with 4 free ends were weaker than those with 3 free ends (31 kPa vs. 116 kPa).
    • Histology confirmed integration of crossed collagen bundles with a bonding strength of 2.1 g.
    • Construct geometry significantly affected mechanical strength, with long, linear constructs being strongest and multibranched constructs weakest.

    Conclusions:

    • The geometry of molds used for casting collagen constructs greatly influences their mechanical strength.
    • In vitro integration of collagen constructs occurs, suggesting feasibility for fabricating composite heart valve structures.
    • This approach offers a promising direction for developing advanced tissue-engineered heart valves.