IMPROVED TISSUE ENGINEERED BLOOD VESSELS AND METHODS AND APPARATUS FOR THEIR MANUFACTURE

摘要

The invention is a tissue engineered blood vessel (TEBV) made from a cultured fibroblast sheet rolled into a multilayer vessel which has sufficient burst strength to withstand physiological blood pressure without the inclusion of smooth muscle cells or synthetic scaffolding. The TEBV is made in a bioreactor having an enclosed chamber, a sheet growth module, a rollable mandrel and a clamp for holding the sheet to the mandrel for rolling.