Decellularized Porcine Pericardium Enhances Autologous Vascularized Matrix as a Prosthesis for Left Ventricular Full-Wall Myocardial Reconstruction

Abstract

Regenerative grafts for myocardial reconstruction are often mechanically not stable enough to withstand the left ventricle’s high blood pressure. Hence, decellularized pericardium may serve as a stabilizing structure for biological myocardium prostheses. The efficacy of detergent- and enzyme-based protocols to decellularize porcine pericardium was compared. Then, the decellularized pericardium was employed for a primary cover of a transmural left ventricular defect in minipigs (n = 9). This pericardium patch was applied to mitigate the high-pressure load on an autologous stomach tissue, which was utilized as a regenerative tissue prosthesis. Decellularization of the porcine pericardium with deoxycholic acid (DOA)- and enzyme-based protocols (trypsin/EDTA) removed 90% of the original cells (p < 0.001). The trypsin/EDTA protocol significantly altered the matrix architecture compared to the DOA protocol. There were no infections or clinical signs of graft rejection following the transplantation of the decellularized pericardium and the autologous segment of the stomach in the surviving animals (n = 7). A good left ventricular function could be detected via MRI six months following surgery. The biological integration of the graft into the host’s tissue was found histologically. The stabilization of initially fragile grafts with decellularized pericardium facilitates the application of regenerative myocardial prostheses even on the left ventricle.