Publications

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OsteoChondral Platform

Culture system for longitudinal monitoring of bone dynamics ex vivo

The Osteochondral platform contributed to another research paper, where an ex vivo culture system was designed to both quantify and visualize bone formation and resorption within osteochondral explants, a unique set-up since this is currently challenging with existing analysis techniques.
Read more about Culture system for longitudinal monitoring of bone dynamics ex vivo
PhysioHeart
PhysioHeart™

A Cardioprotective perfusion protocol limits myocardial functional decline during ex situ heart perfusion

The cardioprotective perfusion protocol introduced in this study, explored with the PhysioHeart platform, showed enhanced myocardial function during ex situ heart perfusion compared to previous methods used in our lab. The improved perfusion protocol now provides a high yield PhysioHeart platform, making it an even more reliable and accessible tool for research in cardiac interventions.
Read more about A Cardioprotective perfusion protocol limits myocardial functional decline during ex situ heart perfusion
BioLiver
BioLiver

Are livers obtained from electrically stunned slaughterhouse pigs equally functional as from laboratory pigs?

A research paper regarding the BioLiver platform investigates the feasibility of utilising livers obtained from slaughterhouses as a potential substitute for laboratory pig livers. Additionally, the influence of various stunning methods on the overall quality and viability of these livers is examined.
Read more about Are livers obtained from electrically stunned slaughterhouse pigs equally functional as from laboratory pigs?
MarioHeart

MarioHeart: Novel In-Vitro Flow Model for Testing Heart Valve Prostheses and Anticoagulant Therapies

This paper presents the development of the MarioHeart in-vitro model by Eindhoven University of Technology and the University Medical Center Utrecht, in collaboration with LifeTec Group, which enables the testing of thrombogenicity of mechanical heart valve prostheses and potential anticoagulant therapies through its unique design and realistic flow simulation.
Read more about MarioHeart: Novel In-Vitro Flow Model for Testing Heart Valve Prostheses and Anticoagulant Therapies
Publication
Cardiac BioSimulator

First Ex Vivo Cardiac Study of a Biological Heart Valve Prosthesis with Intravalvular Impedance Sensors

Our Cardiac BioSimulator has once again played an important role in a recent publication. This publication outlines an ex-vivo cardiac study conducted to examine the feasibility of intravalvular impedance (IVI) sensing for monitoring heart valve prostheses after implantation, specifically when the sensorized valve is surrounded by biological tissue.
Read more about First Ex Vivo Cardiac Study of a Biological Heart Valve Prosthesis with Intravalvular Impedance Sensors
PhysioHeart
PhysioHeart™

VALIDATION OF THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE PORCINE HEART MODEL FOR EX-SITU HEART PERFUSION STUDIES

We are proud to share that our PhysioHeart™ platform contributed to a scientific publication about the validation of slaughterhouse hearts for ex-situ heart perfusion studies, within the scope of the RegMedXD project.
Read more about VALIDATION OF THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE PORCINE HEART MODEL FOR EX-SITU HEART PERFUSION STUDIES
BioLiver
BioLiver

NORMOTHERMIC EX-VIVO LIVER PLATFORM USING PORCINE SLAUGHTERHOUSE LIVERS FOR DISEASE MODELING

A research paper about the BioLiver platform was published, which demonstrated the viability and functionality of using an ex vivo liver perfusion platform to assess hepatic metabolism and liver damage caused by drugs or medical devices, providing a pre-clinical model to reduce and refine animal testing.
Read more about NORMOTHERMIC EX-VIVO LIVER PLATFORM USING PORCINE SLAUGHTERHOUSE LIVERS FOR DISEASE MODELING
Cardiac ultrasound
PhysioHeart™

HIGH FRAME RATE MULTI-PERSPECTIVE CARDIAC ULTRASOUND IMAGING USING PHASED ARRAY PROBES

Researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology's Photoacoustics & Ultrasound Laboratory have developed an imaging technique that combines multiple ultrasound probes to improve image quality and field of view for cardiac disease assessment, which was demonstrated using the PhysioHeart platform at LifeTec Group.
Read more about HIGH FRAME RATE MULTI-PERSPECTIVE CARDIAC ULTRASOUND IMAGING USING PHASED ARRAY PROBES
biopsies
PhysioHeart™

ULTRASTRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MYOCARDIAL REPERFUSION INJURY AND EFFECT OF SELECTIVE INTRACORONARY HYPOTHERMIA: AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY IN ISOLATED BEATING PORCINE HEARTS

Researchers have used the PhysioHeart platform to investigate the effect of intracoronary cooling on reperfusion injury following acute myocardial infarction, and found that intracoronary cooling resulted in less tissue damage before the reopening of the coronary artery.
Read more about ULTRASTRUCTURAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MYOCARDIAL REPERFUSION INJURY AND EFFECT OF SELECTIVE INTRACORONARY HYPOTHERMIA: AN OBSERVATIONAL STUDY IN ISOLATED BEATING PORCINE HEARTS
Cover publication
Cardiac BioSimulator

THE IMPACT OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MINIMALLY INVASIVE CARDIO-THORACIC SURGERY

LifeTec Group contributed to a comprehensive review on the role of biomedical engineering in the development of minimally invasive cardiac surgery techniques, with the goal of facilitating a bridge between biomedical engineering and clinical applications.
Read more about THE IMPACT OF BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MINIMALLY INVASIVE CARDIO-THORACIC SURGERY
Cover publication
Cardiac BioSimulator

FEASIBILITY OF A MITRAL ANNULOPLASTY WITH THE CAPABILITY FOR PERI- AND POSTOPERATIVE ADJUSTMENT

A team from the University of Cambridge and LifeTec collaborated on the development of a REshapeable Mitral Annuloplasty DevIce (REMADI) that allows for peri-operative adjustment during the implantation procedure and post-operatively, which was tested in LifeTec's Cardiac BioSimulator platform and reported in ASME's Journal of Medical Devices.
Read more about FEASIBILITY OF A MITRAL ANNULOPLASTY WITH THE CAPABILITY FOR PERI- AND POSTOPERATIVE ADJUSTMENT
webimage article
PhysioHeart™

PROOF OF PRINCIPLE OF A NOVEL CO-PULSATING INTRA-VENTRICULAR MEMBRANE PUMP

CardiacBooster and LifeTec Group collaborated on a study using the PhysioHeart platform to investigate the performance of a prototype ventricular assist balloon, and early results showed significant improvements in cardiac output and coronary flow.
Read more about PROOF OF PRINCIPLE OF A NOVEL CO-PULSATING INTRA-VENTRICULAR MEMBRANE PUMP
Cellulose Nanofibril Hydrogel

CELLULOSE NANOFIBRIL HYDROGEL PROMOTES HEPATIC DIFFERENTIATION OF HUMAN LIVER ORGANOIDS

In vitro functional liver tissue engineering for drug testing or transplantation can be achieved using the cellulose nanofibril hydrogel as a scaffold, which shows promising mechanical and chemical properties compared to the animal-derived Matrigel and can potentially be used in clinical applications.
Read more about CELLULOSE NANOFIBRIL HYDROGEL PROMOTES HEPATIC DIFFERENTIATION OF HUMAN LIVER ORGANOIDS
Paper photoacoustic assessment
Cardiac BioSimulator

REAL-TIME PHOTOACOUSTIC ASSESSMENT OF RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION LESION FORMATION IN THE LEFT ATRIUM

The study aimed to evaluate real-time visualization of lesion progression during intra-atrial ablation using photoacoustic (PA) imaging, and the results show promising findings that this technology may be applicable in clinical trials in the near future.
Read more about REAL-TIME PHOTOACOUSTIC ASSESSMENT OF RADIOFREQUENCY ABLATION LESION FORMATION IN THE LEFT ATRIUM
PhysioHeart Platform
PhysioHeart™

INVESTIGATING THE PHYSIOLOGY OF NORMOTHERMIC EX VIVO HEART PERFUSION

This paper reports on a study conducted by LifeTec Group investigating the physiology of their PhysioHeart platform, which is used for cardiovascular device and therapy assessment, with the aim of identifying ideas to further improve the platform and keep the isolated hearts in a better condition for a longer timespan.
Read more about INVESTIGATING THE PHYSIOLOGY OF NORMOTHERMIC EX VIVO HEART PERFUSION
Vascular Bioreactor Platform
VAscular BIOreactor

VASCULAR BIOREACTOR

We developed an ex vivo vascular bioreactor that allows for long-term culture of native blood vessels under physiologically relevant conditions, with pulsatile hemodynamics, shear stress, longitudinal pre-stretch, and ultrasound imaging, and demonstrated its potential for testing vascular therapies and devices.
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Musicare
VAscular BIOreactor

BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS OF PHOTO- AND SONO-ACTIVATED ROSE BENGAL: A REVIEW

Rose Bengal (RB) is a versatile photosensitizer with increasing biomedical research interest due to its various applications such as in photodynamic therapy, cancer treatment, and antimicrobial therapy, and its low price and availability.
Read more about BIOMEDICAL APPLICATIONS OF PHOTO- AND SONO-ACTIVATED ROSE BENGAL: A REVIEW
LifeTec Group - Full-field analysis of epicardial strain in an in vitro porcine heart platform
Cardiac BioSimulator

FULL-FIELD ANALYSIS OF EPICARDIAL STRAIN IN AN IN VITRO PORCINE HEART PLATFORM

This study aimed to validate the reliability of optical-based three-dimensional digital image correlation for dynamic full-field analysis of epicardial strain, which was successfully accomplished with high repeatability and resolution and can be used as a reference for the validation of clinical cardiac strain imaging modalities.
Read more about FULL-FIELD ANALYSIS OF EPICARDIAL STRAIN IN AN IN VITRO PORCINE HEART PLATFORM
Hemodialysis Access
VAscular BIOreactor

IN SITU TISSUE ENGINEERED VASCULAR ACCESSES FOR HAEMODIALYSIS

The study developed a three-layered silk fibroin/polyurethane vascular graft through electrospinning as a potential alternative for long-term haemodialysis vascular access, with properties that match the success factors of both synthetic grafts and native arteriovenous fistulae, providing early cannulation potential, degradability, non-haemolytic character, long clotting time, and favourable adhesion of human umbilical vein endothelial cells with increased viability after 3 and 7 days.
Read more about IN SITU TISSUE ENGINEERED VASCULAR ACCESSES FOR HAEMODIALYSIS
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Cardiac BioSimulator

A METHOD FOR TRAINING PHYSICIANS IN BEATING-HEART MITRAL VALVE REPAIR PROCEDURES

A biosimulator was developed to train surgeons in off-pump transventricular mitral valve repairs using extruded polytetrafluoroethylene artificial chordae implanted into flailing mitral leaflets under echocardiographic navigation, with the beating heart biosimulator providing an ideal platform for training on transcatheter and beating heart procedures.
Read more about A METHOD FOR TRAINING PHYSICIANS IN BEATING-HEART MITRAL VALVE REPAIR PROCEDURES
Ex Vivo Model Unravelling Cell Distribution Effect in Hydrogels for Cartilage Repair
OsteoChondral Platform

CARTILAGE REGENERATION

A preannealed Silk Elastin-Like co-Recombinamer hydrogel has been developed and optimized, which shows improved mechanical properties and successful regeneration of hyaline cartilage in an ex vivo model, making it a promising injectable scaffold in the field of cartilage regeneration.
Read more about CARTILAGE REGENERATION
Osteochondral Platform
OsteoChondral Platform

ASSESSMENT OF CARTILAGE REPAIR TREATMENT STRATEGIES

The study presents a novel ex vivo osteochondral culture platform consisting of separated media compartments for cartilage and bone, enabling long-term culture of osteochondral biopsies under controlled conditions, which can be used as a predictive platform suitable for preclinical assessment of cartilage repair strategies in critical size defects and can reduce the need for animal experiments.
Read more about ASSESSMENT OF CARTILAGE REPAIR TREATMENT STRATEGIES
TTTS

THE TWIN-TO-TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME (TTTS)

The LASER project focuses on using laser therapy to treat twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS) by coagulating the placental anastomoses that cause one twin to receive too much blood while the other receives too little, with the project aiming to assess the impact of laser power and firing angle on the coagulation efficiency for closing placental anastomoses.
Read more about THE TWIN-TO-TWIN TRANSFUSION SYNDROME (TTTS)