Coronary artery is the “first killer” in the world, while the classical treatment for this disease is to implant stent. An ideal vascular stent should be nontoxic with self expanding characteristics, quick expanding speed, and appropriate mechanical supporting property. However, no existing vascular stent covers all properties that can be found up to now. Herein, we construct a two-way shape-memory cellulose vascular stent, which can realize shape adjustments by mild solutions like water and alcohol. Shape memory characteristics, mechanical properties, cell toxicity, biocompatibility, ex vivo experiment as well as molecule simulation, and theoretical model have been systemically investigated, revealing that achieved bilayer two-way shape-memory films (BSMFs) can be used as artificial vascular stent. Particularly, this vascular stent made from BSMFs shows superb biocompatibility according to the live/dead cell viability assays. Ex vivo experiment revealed that the novel vascular stent can support arteria coronaria sinistra or left main coronary artery at the opening state while the cross-section of the vessel became two times larger than that of the initial state after implantation. Thus, we believe that effective and scalable BSMFs can make meritorious fundamental contributions to biomaterials science and practical applications such as vascular stent.
Jinlian HU is a renowned fibers, textiles and biomaterials scientist. Her laboratory focuses on unearthing scientific principles and providing solutions to key problems in Healthcare of Wearable Materials in four major areas: Traditional Chinese medical therapies and their materials, energy materials and healthcare, spider silks and their relatives as biomaterials as well as personal protective integration. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry, Hong Kong Institution of Textile and Apparel and the British Textile Institute respectively.
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