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Updated: May 22, 2026

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Generation and Grafting of Tissue-engineered Vessels in a Mouse Model
Published on: March 18, 2015
A prototype tissue engineered blood vessel using amniotic membrane as scaffold
Po-Han Lee1, Shu-Huai Tsai, Lih Kuo
1Department of Life Science, College of Science, Tunghai University, Taichung, Taiwan.
Acta Biomaterialia
|May 22, 2012
Summary
Amniotic membrane scaffolds support tissue engineered blood vessel fabrication. Shear stress enhances endothelial cell function and protein expression, improving vessel integrity and shortening production time.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Tissue Engineering
- Vascular Biology
Background:
- Tissue engineered blood vessels (TEBVs) are crucial for regenerative medicine.
- Natural extracellular matrices offer promising biomaterial scaffolds.
- Amniotic membrane (AM) is a potential scaffold material for TEBVs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate amniotic membrane as a scaffold for TEBV fabrication.
- To investigate the effect of shear stress on endothelial cells within AM scaffolds.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of TEBVs using glutaraldehyde cross-linked AM tubes.
- Endothelialization with porcine vascular endothelial cells (ECs).
- Application of physiological shear stress (12 dyne/cm²) for 2 and 4 days.
- Analysis using immunofluorescent microscopy and Western blot.
Main Results:
- Shear stress maintained an intact EC monolayer aligned with flow.
- Increased expression and development of PECAM-1 and VE-cadherin.
- Altered distribution of integrin β1 to cell-cell junctions.
- Promoted expression of integrin α(v)β(3).
Conclusions:
- Glutaraldehyde cross-linked AM is a viable scaffold for TEBV fabrication.
- Shear stress significantly enhances endothelial cell function and junctional protein expression.
- AM scaffolds accelerate TEBV fabrication time.

