Biofunctionalized Electrospun PCL‐PIBMD/SF Vascular Grafts with PEG and Cell‐Adhesive Peptides for Endothelialization

Abstract

Artificial small‐caliber vascular grafts are still limited in clinical application because of thrombosis, restenosis, and occlusion. Herein, a small‐caliber vascular graft (diameter 2 mm) is fabricated from poly(ε‐caprolactone)‐b‐poly(isobutyl‐morpholine‐2,5‐dione) (PCL‐PIBMD) and silk fibroin (SF) by electrospinning technology and then biofunctionalized with low‐fouling poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and two cell‐adhesive peptide sequences (CREDVW and CAGW) with the purpose of enhancing antithrombogenic activity and endothelialization. The successful grafting of PEG and peptide sequences is confirmed by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The suitable surface wettability of the modified vascular graft is testified by water contact angle analysis. The surface hemocompatibility is verified by platelet adhesion assays and protein adsorption assays, and the results demonstrate that both platelet adhesion and protein adsorption on the biofunctionalized surface are significantly reduced. In vitro studies demonstrate that the biofunctionalized surface with suitable hydrophilicity and cell‐adhesive peptides can selectively promote the adhesion, spreading, and proliferation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells. More importantly, compared with control groups, this biofunctionalized small‐caliber vascular graft shows high long‐term patency and endothelialization after 10 weeks of implantation. The biofunctionalization with PEG and two cell‐adhesive peptide sequences is an effective method to improve the endothelialization and long‐term performance of synthetic vascular grafts.

Acellular Small-Diameter Tissue-Engineered Vascular Grafts

“…This method has a relatively low cost and a short scaffold preparation time. Various natural materials and synthetic materials can be used in the electrospinning technique, such as poly-caprolactone (PCL), polylactide (PLA), polyglycolic acid (PGA); furthermore, multiple kinds of materials can be easily combined in the same scaffold [17]. Electrospinning is an easy fabrication process owing to the simple mechanism of fiber generation from a polymer solution under high voltage.…”

Surface Engineering of Cardiovascular Devices for Improved Hemocompatibility and Rapid Endothelialization

“…[243] Recently, our group fabricated a biofunctionalized vascular graft by electrospinning technology and then modified with dual peptides (CREDVW and CAGW) and hydrophilic PEG to enhance endothelialization and antifouling activity, respectively. [244] The dual peptides-modified surface preformed a more effective platform for cell adhesive efficacy.…”

Insight on the endothelialization of small silk-based tissue-engineered vascular grafts

“…Recently, there have been several researches focusing on making hybrid electrospun scaffolds using both silk and synthetic polymers, like thermoplastic polyurethane or poly(ε-caprolactone)-b-poly(isobutyl-morpholine-2,5dione). [94][95][96][97][98] The idea was especially to design more biomimetic grafts taking advantage of mechanical behavior of synthetic polymers, while using silk for its good cell affinity.…”