Computer Simulation Accurately Predicts Blood Vessel Growth

Bioengineers from the University of Utah created a computer simulation that accurately maps blood vessel growth. This can help in the further treatments to provide better blood supply to skin grafts and implanted ligament and tendon, as well as tissues damaged by diabetes and heart attack.

The image on the left in green, show real blood vessels growing in culture while the right image in red, is the computer simulation of the blood vessel growth. The simulation is based on the study and use of real blood vessels from rats.

Additionally, the top images show real and simulated blood vessel growth when vessel fragments are placed in an "extracellular matrix" of collagen with a relatively low density. The middle and bottom images show how blood vessel growth is impeded when they are placed in collagen matrix with medium and higher density, respectively.

The physical and mechanical properties of the collagen are highlighted by the simulation showing that a denser collagen matrix makes it hard for blood vessels to form a network. By accurately predicting the growth and spread of the blood vessels, bioengineers can prepare implantable tissues that already contain blood vessels that match a patient's blood vessel structure.

This technology can provide better treatment by replacing damaged heart tissues, reconstructing ligaments and tendon, and skin grafts to stimulate blood flow to promote healing of diabetic ulcers.

Study Finds Hardening of Arteries and Related Vascular Diseases Are Caused by Multipotent Vascular Stem Cells

Within the walls of blood vessels are smooth muscle cells and newly discovered vascular stem cells. The stem cells are multipotent and are not only able to differentiate into smooth muscle cells, but also into fat, cartilage and bone cells. UC Berkeley researchers provide evidence that the stem cells are contributing to clogged and hardened arteries.
Credit: Song Li illustration

The network of blood vessels in the body is known as the vascular system. It is comprised of arteries, veins and capillaries that transport and move blood to and from the heart.

Arteries carry blood away from the heart while veins transports blood to it. These run throughout the body with a network of capillaries, embedded in tissue, connecting them. The arteries pass their oxygen-rich blood to the capillaries which allow the exchange of gases within the tissue. The capillaries then pass their waste-rich blood to the veins for transport back to the heart.

Vascular diseases are diseases that affect the vascular system such as the atherosclerosis. This happens when arteries start to harden and become thick and stiff. When the arteries harden, blood clots can occur and clog the blood vessels which blocks the blood flow to the heart or brain. This can trigger a heart attack or a stroke.

Weakened blood vessels can also burst causing internal bleeding or an aneurysm.

The real culprit behind hardened arteries? Stem cells, says landmark study

One of the top suspects behind killer vascular diseases is the victim of mistaken identity, according to researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, who used genetic tracing to help hunt down the real culprit.

The guilty party is not the smooth muscle cells within blood vessel walls, which for decades was thought to combine with cholesterol and fat that can clog arteries. Blocked vessels can eventually lead to heart attacks and strokes, which account for one in three deaths in the United States.

Instead, a previously unknown type of stem cell — a multipotent vascular stem cell — is to blame, and it should now be the focus in the search for new treatments, the scientists report in a new study appearing June 6 in the journal Nature Communications.