Anti-calcification treatment of elastin-rich bioprosthetic materials using Fetuin A for aortic valved conduits - VENUS

Project summary

Cardiovascular diseases are one of the main causes of death in the world. Aortic valve defects strongly contribute to these statistics leading to heart valve repair or replacement. Biological heart valve bioprosthesis made of porcine or bovine tissue are promising, however their lifetime is limited by 10 - 12 years due to calcification process. Especially for materials with a high elastin content conventional pre-treatment do not solve a problem of calcification. VENUS aims to develop a pre-treatment method for anti-calcification of elastin-rich xenogenic materials using Fetuin A, a natural anti-calcification serum protein. The effectiveness of the proposed technology will be demonstrated on right-sided aortic valved conduits fabricated from bovine jugular vein. The successful implementation of the project will lead to a competitive technology in interventional cardiology with a high public value and commercialization potential.