Mimicking Native Extracellular Matrix with Phytic Acid-Crosslinked Protein Nanofibers for Cardiac Tissue Engineering

Rajeswari Ravichandran, Vera Seitz, Jayarama Reddy Venugopal, Radhakrishnan Sridhar, Subramanian Sundarrajan, Shayanti Mukherjee, Erich Wintermantel, Seeram Ramakrishna

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60 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

A functional scaffold fabricated is developed from natural polymers, favoring regeneration of the ischemic myocardium. Hemoglobin/gelatin/fibrinogen (Hb/gel/fib) nanofibers are fabricated by electrospinning and are characterized for morphology, scaffold composition, functional groups and hydrophilicity. It is hypothesized that ex vivo pretreatment of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) using 5-azacytidine and such a functional nanofibrous construct having a high oxygen-carrying potential could lead to enhanced cardiomyogenic differentiation of MSCs and result in superior biological and functional effects. The combination of a functional nanofibrous scaffold composed of natural polymers and crosslinked with a natural crosslinking agent, phytic acid, and stem cell biology may prove to be a novel therapeutic device for treatment of myocardial infarction.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)366-375
Number of pages10
JournalMacromolecular Bioscience
Volume13
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2013
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Cardiogenic differentiation
  • Crosslinkers
  • Ischemic myocardium
  • Mesenchymal stem cells
  • Phytic acid

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