Rational design of an improved tissue-engineered vascular graft: determining the optimal cell dose and incubation time

Aim: We investigated the effect of cell seeding dose and incubation time on tissue-engineered vascular graft (TEVG) patency. Materials & methods: Various doses of bone marrow-derived mononuclear cells (BM-MNCs) were seeded onto TEVGs, incubated for 0 or 12 h, and implanted in C57BL/6 mice. Different doses of human BM-MNCs were seeded onto TEVGs and measured for cell attachment. Results: The incubation time showed no significant effect on TEVG patency. However, TEVG patency was significantly increased in a dose-dependent manner. In the human graft, more bone marrow used for seeding resulted in increased cell attachment in a dose-dependent manner. Conclusion: Increasing the BM-MNC dose and reducing incubation time is a viable strategy for improving the performance and utility of the graft.