Cellular mechanisms of material-associated thrombosis

虽然心血管设备大大延长了数百万人的预期寿命，但它们的使用并非没有并发症。 尽管有抗凝剂和抗血小板治疗，但心血管器械（如支架和心脏瓣膜）仍会发生血凝块（血栓）。 其后果可能是致命的，治疗这些血栓性并发症的成本是显着的。 虽然大多数关于血栓形成的研究都忽略了白色血细胞（白细胞）的作用，但我自己的研究表明，它们可能会产生重大影响。 使用体外实验，即血液接触机械心脏瓣膜和支架中使用的材料，本研究将更详细地研究白细胞在材料存在下血栓形成中的作用。 将特别强调材料、白细胞和血液其他成分（如血小板）之间的相互作用。 这是一个整体的方法，将确定经常被忽视的互动。 因此，这将确定潜在的药物治疗和表面改性，有效地减少血栓形成的心血管设备的发病率的目标。这项研究将培养四名研究生在生物材料工程的跨学科方法，准备他们为新兴的加拿大生物技术产业作出贡献。 总的来说，这项研究将更好地了解血液与材料的相互作用，并有助于开发更容易被人体接受的材料。更好的材料将转化为使用心血管设备的并发症减少，从而提高患者的生活质量并降低再次住院费用。

While cardiovascular devices have significantly increased the life expectancy of millions of people, their use is not without complications.  Despite anticoagulant and anti-platelet therapies, blood clots (thrombus) continue to occur with cardiovascular devices such as stents and heart valves.  The consequences may be fatal and the cost to treat these thrombotic complications is significant.  While most research on thrombus formation has ignored the role of white blood cells (leukocytes), my own research has shown that they may have a significant impact.  Using in vitro experiments, whereby blood contacts materials used in mechanical heart valves and stents, this research will examine in more details the role that leukocytes play in thrombus formation in the presence of a material.  Particular emphasis will be placed on the interactions between the material, leukocytes and other components of blood such as platelets.  This is a holistic approach which will identify interactions that are often overlooked.  As a result, this will identify potential target for drug therapies and surface modifications that effectively reduce the incidence of thrombus formation with cardiovascular devices.This research will train four graduate students in the interdisciplinary methods of biomaterials engineering, preparing them to contribute to the emerging Canadian biotechnology industry.  Overall, this research will provide a greater understanding of blood-material interactions and help in the development of materials that are better accepted by the human body. Better materials will translate into fewer complications with the use of cardiovascular devices, hence improving the quality of life of patients and reducing re-hospitalization costs.