Project description
Tissue-engineered heart valves
The mitral valve is responsible for maintaining proper blood flow in the heart in one direction, from the left atrium to the left ventricle. When the mitral valve doesn’t work properly, the heart does not pump enough blood, causing fatigue and shortness of breath. In severe cases, prosthetic heart valves are used to replace dysfunctional valves. The EU-funded BIOMITRAL project will focus on tissue engineered valves that have the capacity to also regenerate the endogenous tissue, facilitate remodelling, and grow with the patient. Researchers will develop a polymer-based mitral valve that functions according to the native physiological mechanism and exhibits enhanced functional performance.
Objective
Tissue Engineered Heart Valves (TEHVs) can restore function in the pulmonary and aortic positions and have shown capacity for tissue regeneration and growth in pre-clinical models. Yet, this concept has not been extended to the Mitral Valve (MV), whose pathologies affect >25% of the valve disease patients in Europe. In this proposal, we introduce a bio-inspired design methodology and bioprocessing technology to engineer BIOMITRAL: a polymeric, stent-less, tissue engineered MV that recapitulates native structure-function. Key to our approach is the engineering of MV leaflets and chordal apparatus. In the native MV, this set of tendon-like appendages mechanically connects the leaflets to the left ventricle (LV) and allows for harmonization of the valve kinematics, coaptation and ventricle contractile dynamics. Commercial MV prostheses used for MV replacement, as well as most existing TEHVs are mounted on synthetic stents that lack of this important structure and consequently neglect this physiological mechanism. In addition, non-degradable stents cannot adapt to patient's growth, de-facto negating a key advantage in TEHVs. Our specific hypothesis is that recapitulating native leaflet structure-function and incorporating engineered chordal apparatus will lead to an engineered MV with enhanced functional and remodeling performances. To verify our hypothesis, we will: Aim 1. Characterize the structure-function of freshly isolated human valve tissue and use the derived properties to fabricate stented (control) and stentless BIOMITRAL prototypes; Aim 2. Assess prototypes mechanics and kinematics in silico via finite element modeling and in vitro in a pulse duplicator; Aim 3. Evaluate BIOMITRAL in vivo functional performance and assess remodeling in a chronic ovine model. Engineering a “living” MV with bioinspired leaflets and chordae that connect engineered leaflets with the LV is a revolutionary concept that can fundamentally transform the design of MV prostheses.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pathology
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology implants
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) ERC-2020-COG
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
90133 Palermo
Italy
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