Biomaterials
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The major loss of tissue extracellular matrix (ECM) after myocardial ischemia is a serious burden that gradually leads to heart failure. Due to lack of available treatment methods to restore the cardiac function, various research strategies have come up to treat the ischemic myocardium. However these have met with limited success due to the complexity of the cardiac tissue, which exhibits a nanofibrous collagenous matrix with spatio-temporal localization of a combination of growth factors. ⋯ Preclinical evaluation of the growth factor embedded nanofibrous patch in a rabbit acute myocardial infarction (AMI) model was studied and cardiac function assessment was made through ECG and echocardiography. The evidence for angiogenesis in the patch secured regions was analyzed through histopathology and immunohistochemistry. Our results confirm the effectiveness of growth factor embedded nanofiber matrix in restoration of cardiac function after ischemia when compared to conventional patch material thereby exhibiting promise as a valuable therapeutic solution to treat ischemic disorders.