1. Robert Farley Biomedical Engineering

2.  Engineered blood vessels made from autologous cells  Autologous cells – cells used to build the vessels are extracted from the patient  Fibroblasts and endothelial cells are harvested from a small biopsy specimen of skin and superficial vein

3.  The specimen extracted is then combined with a method called sheet based tissue engineering  SBTE is a method of tissue engineering where completely biological and living autologous tissues are used  They have remarkable mechanical strength without the inclusion of any exogenous scaffolds

4.  Engineered vessels have the same strength thresholds as normal vessels  No reason for rejection by the body  No synthetic materials are used  Will not move as shunts tend to do

5.  Objective of this study was to demonstrate that a tissue-engineered blood vessel produced in vitro could withstand the challenges of arterial pressure produced by an arteriovenous fistula for a period of 90 days  Ten patients receiving hemodialysis whose arteriovenous shunts were failing were enrolled

6.  Patients had previously failed dialysis- access grafts, diabetes, controlled hypertension and obesity  Ranged in age from 29 to 89 years  Patients underwent surgery where autologous vessels were implanted in place of the shunts  Success of the vessel was measured using Doppler and angiographic imaging

7.  No evidence of vessel degradation  Because of the age of some of the patients, they did not make it through the trial  Death was unrelated to trial  Remaining patients showed an increase in blood flow rate strength and of the connection involving the vessel

8.  Few complications were noted after the 90 day trial  2 months after the trial, 3 of the patients still had no side effects  Though the trial length was short, scientists and doctors involved in this study feel as though this is a milestone for cardiovascular engineering

9.  Engineered Blood Vessel for Adult Arterial Revascularization." New England Journal of Medicine 1453rd ser. 357.1451 (2007). Web..  "Tissue Engineered Blood Vessel For Adult Arterial Revascularization." NIH 365th ser. 361 (2006). Web. 24 Apr. 2010..