ViVitro – UC Irvine collaboration to be presented at Heart Valve Society 2016 Scientific Meeting

VICTORIA, B.C., January 29, 2016— ViVitro Labs announces that findings from a collaboration between the company and the University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA on Crimp Induced Leaflet Damage and Calcification of Transcatheter Heart Valves will be presented at The Heart Valve Society 2016 Scientific Meeting, March 17-19 at the Marriott Marquis in New York City.

Crimp Induced Leaflet Damage and Calcification of Transcatheter Heart Valves
Aditi Sinha¹, Oleksandr Barannyk², Arash Kheradvar¹.
¹University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA, USA, ²ViVitro Labs Inc, Victoria, BC, Canada.

OBJECTIVE: There is increasing evidence regarding different complications arising from clinical implantation of transcatheter aortic heart valves (THV). However, little is known if crimp-induced damage increases tissue calcification thereby reducing the durability of THRs. We are addressing the association between tissue micro-damage and calcification under accelerated wear conditions.

METHODS: Self-expandable THVs with glutaraldehyde-fixed bovine pericardial leaflet were used. The valves were divided into (1) uncrimped, (2) 18-Fr crimped, and (3) 14-Fr crimped. The six THVs were tested in a ViVitro HiCycle accelerated wear testing (AWT) system for 50 million cycles, at 37ºC, and 800 cycles/minute. A calcifying solution was used with a final concentration of 55 mM (KCl), 1.5 mM CaCl2, 1.25 KH2PO4 and 20 mM Barbital. The solution was monitored for consistent pH 7.5 and was changed weekly within the test period to minimize fluctuation of Ca++ and HPO4-. The pressure difference across the valves was adjusted at 120 mmHg. After completion of the tests, the valves were retrieved, washed, photographed, imaged using micro-CT scan, and tissues were embedded for histological analyses including stains for calcium (Von Kossa), collagen (Trichrome), and elastin (VVG).