Bioengineered Blood Vessel Appears Safe for Dialysis Patients

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DURHAM, N.C. – Man-made blood vessels developed by researchers at Duke University, Yale University and the tissue engineering company Humacyte appear to be both safe and more durable than commonly used synthetic versions in patients undergoing kidney dialysis, the researchers report.
The findings, published May 12 in The Lancet, resulted from a phase 2 study among 60 patients with kidney failure who required dialysis, which often requires a synthetic graft when the patient’s own blood vessel degrades from frequent needle sticks.
Such grafts, however, are prone to infection, clotting, and other complications. And alternative bioengineered grafts derived from the patient, a donor, or animal tissue have been shown to perform no better than synthetics. 
The Duke and Yale research team -- along with surgeons in Poland and the United States and scientists at Humacyte, which is developing the bioengineered vessel -- tested a human acellular vessel, or HAV, that is manufactured to be 

available to patients on demand, rather than made-to-order using an individual’s own cells.   “The bioengineered blood vessel represents a critical step in tissue engineering,” said Jeffrey Lawson, M.D., Ph.D., professor of surgery and pathology at Duke and chief medical officer of Humacyte. “Because these vessels contain no...

Source: DukeHealth.org: Duke Health Features - May 13, 2016 Category: Pediatrics Tags: Duke Medicine Source Type: news