Flexible Conductive Decellularized Fish Skin Matrix as a Functional Scaffold for Myocardial Infarction Repair

Engineering cardiac patches are proven to be effective in myocardial infarction (MI) repair, but it is still a tricky problem in tissue engineering to construct a scaffold with good biocompatibility, suitable mechanical properties, and solid structure. Herein, decellularized fish skin matrix is utilized with good biocompatibility to prepare a flexible conductive cardiac patch through polymerization of polydopamine (PDA) and polypyrrole (PPy). Compared with single modification, the double modification strategy facilitated the efficiency of pyrrole polymerization, so that the patch conductivity is improved. According to the results of experiments in vivo and in vitro, the scaffold can promote the maturation and functionalization of cardiomyocytes (CMs). It can also reduce the inflammatory response, increase local microcirculation, and reconstruct the conductive microenvironment in infarcted myocardia, thus improving the cardiac function of MI rats. In addition, the excellent flexibility of the scaffold, which enables it to be implanted in vivo through folding-delivering-re-stretehing pathway, provides the possibility of microoperation under endoscope, which avoids the secondary damage to myocardium by traditional thoracotomy for implantation surgery.

Automated summary

Using a decellularized fish skin matrix, a flexible conductive cardiac patch is prepared through the polymerization of polydopamine and polypyrrole. This patch improves cardiomyocyte maturation and functionalization, reduces inflammation, enhances local microcirculation, and reconstructs the conductive microenvironment in infarcted myocardia. The excellent flexibility of the scaffold allows for implantation through a folding-delivering-re-stretching pathway, enabling microsurgery under endoscopy and avoiding secondary damage to the myocardium by traditional thoracotomy.