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Credit: Robert Emilsson
Researchers have found they can engineer vascular grafts using autologous peripheral blood and successfully transplant them into patients with portal vein thrombosis.
The team said this research provides early evidence for generating personalized blood vessels using stem cells from a blood sample rather than the bone marrow.
Suchitra Sumitran-Holgersson, PhD, of Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, and her colleagues described the work in EBioMedicine.
The researchers tested their new method on two young children with portal vein thrombosis.
The team used the patients’ own stem cells to grow new blood vessels, a procedure that had been performed at Sahlgrenska University Hospital once before. The novel finding was that they could do this without extracting the cells from the bone marrow.
The researchers took decellularized allogeneic vascular scaffolds and repopulated them with peripheral whole blood in a bioreactor.
The team found they could use 25 mL of blood, the minimum quantity needed to obtain enough stem cells. And the extraction procedure worked the first time.
“Not only that, but the blood itself accelerated growth of the new vein,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “The entire process took only a week, as opposed to a month in the first case. The blood contains substances that naturally promote growth.”
Dr Sumitran-Holgersson and her colleagues have treated three patients thus far. Two of those patients are still doing well and have veins that are functioning as they should. In the third case, the child is under medical surveillance, and the outcome is more uncertain.
“We believe that this technological progress can lead to dissemination of the method for the benefit of additional groups of patients, such as those with varicose veins or myocardial infarction, who need new blood vessels,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “Our dream is to be able to grow complete organs as a way of overcoming the current shortage from donors.” 
Credit: Robert Emilsson
Researchers have found they can engineer vascular grafts using autologous peripheral blood and successfully transplant them into patients with portal vein thrombosis.
The team said this research provides early evidence for generating personalized blood vessels using stem cells from a blood sample rather than the bone marrow.
Suchitra Sumitran-Holgersson, PhD, of Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, and her colleagues described the work in EBioMedicine.
The researchers tested their new method on two young children with portal vein thrombosis.
The team used the patients’ own stem cells to grow new blood vessels, a procedure that had been performed at Sahlgrenska University Hospital once before. The novel finding was that they could do this without extracting the cells from the bone marrow.
The researchers took decellularized allogeneic vascular scaffolds and repopulated them with peripheral whole blood in a bioreactor.
The team found they could use 25 mL of blood, the minimum quantity needed to obtain enough stem cells. And the extraction procedure worked the first time.
“Not only that, but the blood itself accelerated growth of the new vein,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “The entire process took only a week, as opposed to a month in the first case. The blood contains substances that naturally promote growth.”
Dr Sumitran-Holgersson and her colleagues have treated three patients thus far. Two of those patients are still doing well and have veins that are functioning as they should. In the third case, the child is under medical surveillance, and the outcome is more uncertain.
“We believe that this technological progress can lead to dissemination of the method for the benefit of additional groups of patients, such as those with varicose veins or myocardial infarction, who need new blood vessels,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “Our dream is to be able to grow complete organs as a way of overcoming the current shortage from donors.”
Credit: Robert Emilsson
Researchers have found they can engineer vascular grafts using autologous peripheral blood and successfully transplant them into patients with portal vein thrombosis.
The team said this research provides early evidence for generating personalized blood vessels using stem cells from a blood sample rather than the bone marrow.
Suchitra Sumitran-Holgersson, PhD, of Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Sweden, and her colleagues described the work in EBioMedicine.
The researchers tested their new method on two young children with portal vein thrombosis.
The team used the patients’ own stem cells to grow new blood vessels, a procedure that had been performed at Sahlgrenska University Hospital once before. The novel finding was that they could do this without extracting the cells from the bone marrow.
The researchers took decellularized allogeneic vascular scaffolds and repopulated them with peripheral whole blood in a bioreactor.
The team found they could use 25 mL of blood, the minimum quantity needed to obtain enough stem cells. And the extraction procedure worked the first time.
“Not only that, but the blood itself accelerated growth of the new vein,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “The entire process took only a week, as opposed to a month in the first case. The blood contains substances that naturally promote growth.”
Dr Sumitran-Holgersson and her colleagues have treated three patients thus far. Two of those patients are still doing well and have veins that are functioning as they should. In the third case, the child is under medical surveillance, and the outcome is more uncertain.
“We believe that this technological progress can lead to dissemination of the method for the benefit of additional groups of patients, such as those with varicose veins or myocardial infarction, who need new blood vessels,” Dr Sumitran-Holgersson said. “Our dream is to be able to grow complete organs as a way of overcoming the current shortage from donors.”