TAGS: Medical
Bioengineers from Trinity have developed a prototype patch that does the same job as crucial aspects of heart tissue. Their patch withstands the mechanical demands and mimics the electrical signaling properties that allow our hearts to pump blood rhythmically round our bodies.
The Making of New Patch
The functionality of thermoplastic polymers could be leveraged by its structural geometry. Engineering replacement materials for heart tissue is challenging since it is an organ that is constantly moving and contracting. Hence, the bioengineers then set about making a patch that could control the expansion of a material in multiple directions and tune this using an engineering design approach.
Using Melt Electrowriting
This new patch with effective design, allows researchers to mimic the direction-dependent mechanical movement of the heart, which can be sustained repeatably.
The patches were manufactured via melt electrowriting – a core technology of Spraybase® – which is reproducible, accurate, and scalable. The patches were also coated with the electroconductive polymer polypyrrole to provide electrical conductivity while maintaining cell compatibility.
The patch withstood repeated stretching, which is a dominant concern for cardiac biomaterials, and showed good elasticity, to accurately mimic that key property of heart muscle.
Dr Dinorath Olvera, Trinity, first author on the paper, added “
Our electroconductive patches support electrical conduction between biological tissue in an ex vivo model. These results therefore represent a significant step towards generating a bioengineered patch capable of recapitulating aspects of heart tissue – namely its mechanical movement and electrical signaling.”
Working on Next Generation of Designs
Professor Michael Monaghan added “
Essentially, our material addresses a lot of requirements. The bulk material is currently approved for medical device use, the design accommodates the movement of the pumping heart, and has been functionalized to accommodate signaling between isolated contractile tissues.”
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This study currently reports the development of our method and design, but we are now looking forward to furthering the next generation of designs and materials with the eventual aim of applying this patch as a therapy for a heart attack.”
The success achieved by the team highlights the potential applications of this novel technology in the cardiac field and succinctly captures the benefits of industry and academic collaboration, through platforms such as the IPP.
Source: Trinity