Bovine aortas to be used in humans

An academic and his team from Ankara University has produced an aorta that can be used in humans from bovine aortas with a 3D bio-printer.

Ankara University Biochemistry Department Assoc. Prof. Dr. Burak Derkuş and his team of graduate and doctoral students, in collaboration with researchers from the U.K., Switzerland, Middle East Technical University and Çanakkale Onsekiz Mart University, have produced natural aortic vessels that can be used in humans from bovine aortas.

Bovine aortas obtained from slaughterhouses were decellularized in the laboratory, transformed into an innovative biomaterial and new aortic vessels were created using a 3D bioprinter.

The new vessels, which have an elastic structure, received their mechanically durable structure from an algae-derived biopolymer and their superior biological properties from decellularized aortic tissue.

Stating that problems such as aortic narrowing can sometimes occur due to unhealthy diet, smoking or genetic inherited diseases, Derkuş said if such conditions progress to advanced stages and especially if surgical procedures are needed, synthetic aortic grafts or vascular grafts are used and these do not have the biological activity or function of an aortic vessel.

"We have seen that the aortas we developed promote advanced vascular formation and does not cause inflammation. It has superior properties in terms of hydrodynamic mechanical strength. It is extremely elastic and suturable," Derkuş said.

"After a clinical trial, we hope that these aortas will be used in cardiovascular surgeries," he added.