Co-culture of endothelial and smooth muscle cells for the development of blood vessel constructs

[Excerpt] Diseases of the blood vessels, particularly of small diameter arteries are responsible for most of deaths in developing and developed countries. The number of operations using arterial prostheses and of small calibre vascular bypass reaches enormous values every year. With the limited availability of functional autologous vessels the need for new strategies to develop artificial blood vessels is increasing. The aim of this work is to develop constructs composed of a polymeric support with two different surfaces, displaying distinct surface properties, to seed endothelial (ECs) and smooth muscle cells (SMCs) with the purpose of obtaining an artificial blood vessel substitute. [...]