TPU scientists create artificial vessels from biodegradable polymers

TOMSK, Feb 18 – RIA Tomsk. TPU scientists get two grants from the Russian Science Foundation (RSF) worth 6 million rubles annually until 2024 to create artificial vessels that exactly mimic the structure of natural ones, and to develop chlorine, bromine and iodine compounds for environmentally friendly catalysts and radiopharmaceuticals, the university's press service said.

"Two projects of Tomsk Polytechnic University (TPU) scientists received support under the grant competition of the Russian Science Foundation. With the support of the fund, researchers will develop artificial blood vessels using a new method and synthesize new compounds of chlorine, bromine and iodine... Both projects received support in the amount of 6 million rubles a year (each) until 2024 with the possibility of extension", - the report said.

Thus, a grant from the Russian Science Foundation received a TPU project under the guidance of the TPU Vice-Rector for Research Mekhman Yusubov for a study on the preparation of new compounds of iodine, chlorine and bromine. It is expected that these studies will help create environmentally friendly catalysts, promising materials and radiopharmaceuticals for positron emission tomography  (internal organs research method).

Scientists under the guidance of an employee of the TPU Laboratory for Plasma Hybrid Systems Evgeny Bolbasov with the support of the Russian Science Foundation, will develop a technology for producing artificial blood vessels from biodegradable polymers by the method of multichannel electrospinning. Scientists believe that this method will create vessels that mimic the structure of natural vessels as closely as possible, which is critical in the development of implants.

"The electrospinning method involves drawing the finest fibers from a polymer solution under the action of an electric field. And multichannel spinning allows to feed different polymers through independent channels and create a composition of several polymers that cannot be obtained by other methods. This method has not previously been used to create artificial blood vessels", - Bolbasov is quoted.

Biological preclinical studies of the developed vessels will be carried out at the Center for Preclinical and Translational Research of the Almazov National Medical Research Centre of the Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation in St. Petersburg.