ERI: Engineering Bioactive Metallo-Elastomer Vascular Grafts with Integrated Piezoelectric Stimulation

Heart and blood vessel diseases are among the leading causes of death in the United States. Many patients require surgery to replace damaged blood vessels, but reliable artificial options for small vessels do not currently exist. Existing synthetic grafts frequently fail because they heal poorly and can cause blood clots. Surgeons often must use a patient’s own veins, increasing pain, risk, and recovery times. This Engineering Research Initiation (ERI) project will develop a biodegradable blood vessel graft that actively supports healing. Rather than act as a passive tube, the graft will be designed to transform into a living blood vessel over time. The graft material will contain beneficial metal ions such as magnesium and zinc that support healthy tissue growth as the graft gradually breaks down and is replaced by natural tissue. A unique feature is the use of piezoelectric materials which generate small electrical signals when they are stretched or compressed. Heartbeats naturally cause blood vessels to expand and contract. The graft is designed to use this motion to create electrical signals that encourage growth of healthy cells along the inner surface of the vessel. These cells are essential for preventing blood clots and keeping blood flowing smoothly. This project includes strong educational and outreach activities. Graduate, undergraduate, and high school students will participate in hands-on research and learning experiences. Outreach programs will introduce students to biomedical engineering to inspire interest in biotechnology and engineering careers. Overall, this research seeks to improve patient care while training the next generation of engineers. This ERI project will develop bioactive, biodegradable vascular grafts integrating piezoelectric stimulation to address the long-standing problem of failure of synthetic, small-diameter blood vessel replacements. The grafts will employ a hybrid architecture combining piezoelectric poly(L-lactic acid) (PLLA) fibers with a dual-crosslinked metallo-elastomer scaffold made from poly(1,3-propylene itaconate-co-2,2′-bipyridine-5,5′-dicarboxylate-co-succinate-co-sebacate) elastomers. The elastomeric scaffold will provide mechanical compliance, resistance to long-term deformation, controlled degradation, and structural support during vascular remodeling. The central innovation will be the incorporation of piezoelectric PLLA fibers within the blood-contacting region of the graft. Electrical signals generated in response to mechanical deformation will enable the graft to convert natural pulsatile blood flow into localized bioelectric stimulation. The electrical cues will be designed to actively promote endothelial cell alignment, maturation, and anti-thrombotic function, directly addressing incomplete endothelialization. By delivering adaptive electrical stimulation during early remodeling, this strategy will move beyond passive scaffold designs toward self-powered regulation of vascular healing. Grafts will be fabricated using solution electrowriting, which enables precise control over fiber architecture, porosity, and mechanical compliance while allowing spatial localization of piezoelectric fibers. Material properties, degradation behavior, and piezoelectric output will be optimized through in vitro testing under physiologically relevant conditions. In vivo validation will be performed using a rat carotid artery interposition model to evaluate graft patency, structural integrity, degradation, and tissue regeneration over time. The results will establish new design principles for adaptive, energy-harvesting biomaterials and advance the development of next-generation vascular grafts. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria. NSF Award ID: 2553258 | Program: 01002627DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT | Principal Investigator: Ying Chen | Institution: Rowan University, GLASSBORO, NJ | Award Amount: $200,000 View on NSF Award Search: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award/?AWD_ID=2553258 View on Research.gov: https://www.research.gov/awardapi-service/v1/awards/2553258.html