Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 1 of 1
Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Glycosaminoglycan Stabilization Reduces Tissue Buckling In Bioprosthetic Heart Valves, Sagar Shah
Glycosaminoglycan Stabilization Reduces Tissue Buckling In Bioprosthetic Heart Valves, Sagar Shah
All Theses
Currently, bioprosthetic heart valves are crosslinked with glutaraldehyde to prevent tissue degradation and to reduce tissue antigenicity. Glutaraldehyde forms stable crosslinks with collagen via a Schiff base reaction of the aldehyde with an amine group of the hydroxylysine/lysine in collagen. However, within a decade of implantation, 20-30% of these bioprostheses will become dysfunctional and over 50% will fail due to degeneration within 12-15 years post-operatively.
Gylcosaminoglycans, a major constituent of valvular tissue, play an important role in maintaining a hydrated environment necessary for absorbing compressive loads, modulating shear stresses, and resisting tissue buckling. One of the disadvantages of glutaraldehyde crosslinking …