A Microstructured Sutureless Tissue Adhesive for a Growth-Adaptive Pediatric Heart Valve

We are designing a growth-adaptive pediatric heart valve for young children born with congenital valve defects and have demonstrated feasibility of the device in growing animals. However, one of the challenges with assembling these devices is that they currently require suturing the bioprosthetic valve to the stent by hand, which is a time- and skill-intensive process. To this end, we are developing a sutureless technology called MANTIS (mechanical adhesion to tissue) which leverages microstructured fasteners to facilitate rapid and strong attachment of rigid materials to compliant biological tissues. Using different fabrication methods, we can create 2.5D or 3D structures in metals and polymers with re-entrant profiles ranging 1-100 microns in feature size scale. We will present adhesion data under various loading conditions that may be encountered in the body. 

Dave Carter: Dr. David Carter is a Laboratory Fellow at Draper. In his 23 years at Draper, he has led efforts to apply nanotechnology, materials, and micro/nanofabrication to a variety of areas spanning electronics, optics, biomedical devices, and human gecko climbing. Dr. Carter received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from MIT and his A.B. and M.S. degrees in Engineering Sciences from Dartmouth College. He has co-authored 33 journal and conference papers and has 21 patents in micro/ nanofabrication, nanotechnology, and materials. 

Corin Williams: Dr. Corin Williams is a biomedical engineer at Draper with a background in tissue engineering, organ-on-chip, and medical devices. She is passionate about developing technologies for pediatric patients and women’s health, as well as mentoring the next generation of scientists and engineers.