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Friday 3 September, 2010
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Bacteria produce tomorrow´s artificial blood vessels
Artificial blood vessel. Picture: The University of Gothenburg
Cellulose produced by bacteria can in future be used to make blood vessels. The use of cellulose reduces the risk of blood clots compared with the synthetic materials currently used in bypass operations. These are the findings of a dissertation undertaken at the Sahlgrenska Academy.
The cellulose is produced by a bacterium known as Acetobacter Xylinum. It is strong enough to handle the body´s blood pressure and integrates well with the body´s own tissue. The dissertation shows that the material also reduces the risk of blood clots compared with the synthetic materials used at present.
“The bacterial cellulose promotes virtually no blood clot formation at all and the blood coagulates much more slowly than with other materials on which I have conducted comparative tests. The cellulose also functions very well in contact with blood and is a highly promising alternative for artificial blood vessels," says molecular biologist Helen Fink, who wrote the dissertation.

Natural blood vessels are coated internally with cells that ensure that the blood does not form clots. Helen Fink and her colleagues have altered the bacterial cellulose so that these cells attach more securely.
“We have used an entirely new method that makes it possible to increase the number of cells growing in the bacterial cellulose without altering the structure of the material," explains Helen Fink.

Title: Artificial blood vessels — studies on endothelial cell and blood interactions with bacterial cellulose

FACTS, BYPASS OPERATIONS
If coronary circulation around the heart is obstructed through atherosclerosis, it may become necessary to perform bypass surgery. Every year, about 6000 such procedures are performed in Sweden. The surgeon takes part of a vein, for instance from the patient´s leg, and uses it to transport blood past the blockage near the heart. Some patients have no blood vessels that are suitable donors for this procedure, in which case a synthetic material is used.

Source: Sahlgrenska Academy

For more information, please visit www.sahlgrenska.guexternal link, opens in new window

Updated: 2010-08-25
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