Heart valve bioprothesis; effect of different acellularizations methods on the biomechanical and morphological properties of porcine aortic and pulmonary valve

Tissue engineering is a promising tool for the creation of a new type of the heart valve bioprothesis. The biological scaffold composed of decellularized tissue has been successfully used for the constructions of the valve prosthesis. An analysis of the efficiency of the valve leaflet acellularization methods and the influence of those methods on the morphology and the biomechanical properties of the ECM (extra cellular matrix) was performed. Fresh porcine hearts obtained from a slaughterhouse were used in the experiments. The efficiency of the acellularization methods was dependent on the tissue type and the acellularoization methods used. The more effective were the enzymatic methods, both because of the cell removal efficiency and the effect on the biomechanical properties of the heart valve. The differences in the biomechanical and morphological properties of the porcine aortic and the pulmonary valve after different types of the acellularization process could influence the hemodynamic conditions of the heart after the valve replacement, which limited the range of the tissue types used for the creations of the tissue engineered heart valve.