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Updated: Apr 30, 2026
Perfusable Vascular Network with a Tissue Model in a Microfluidic Device
Published on: April 4, 2018
Cardiac Tissue Vascularization: From Angiogenesis to Microfluidic Blood Vessels
Miles Montgomery1, Boyang Zhang1, Milica Radisic2
1Department of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Insights
Myocardial infarction causes heart muscle cell death due to blocked arteries. Tissue engineering aims to improve blood vessel growth in the heart, but current methods face vascularization challenges.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Cardiovascular Research
- Regenerative Medicine
Background:
- Myocardial infarction (MI) leads to cardiomyocyte death and microvasculature loss.
- Current therapies struggle with insufficient revascularization and remuscularization of the ischemic myocardium.
- Tissue engineering offers potential for direct cardiac repair.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current vascularization strategies for engineered cardiac tissues.
- To highlight challenges and breakthroughs in improving cardiac tissue vascularization.
- To discuss the impact of vascularization on ischemic heart therapies.
Main Methods:
- Review of biological angiogenesis approaches.
- Analysis of microfluidic blood vessel integration in cardiac tissue.
- Examination of cell and growth factor delivery systems.
Main Results:
- Inadequate vascularization in vitro and in vivo remains a key limitation.
- Diverse strategies are being explored to enhance blood vessel formation.
- Progress in vascularization is crucial for therapeutic efficacy.
Conclusions:
- Advancements in cardiac tissue vascularization are critical for treating myocardial infarction.
- Integrating biological and engineered vascular networks holds promise.
- Future breakthroughs will significantly impact ischemic heart disease treatment.
Abstract:
Myocardial infarction results from a blockage of a major coronary artery that shuts the delivery of oxygen and nutrients to a region of the myocardium, leading to massive cardiomyocytes death and regression of microvasculature. Growth factor and cell delivery methods have been attempted to revascularize the ischemic myocardium and prevent further cell death. Implantable cardiac tissue patches were engineered to directly revascularize as well as remuscularize the affected muscle. However, inadequate vascularization in vitro and in vivo limits the efficacy of these new treatment options. Breakthroughs in cardiac tissue vascularization will profoundly impact ischemic heart therapies. In this review, we discuss the full spectrum of vascularization approaches ranging from biological angiogenesis to microfluidic blood vessels as related to cardiac tissue engineering.
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