Cardiovascular diseases represent the number one cause of death globally, with atherosclerosis a major contributor. Different fabrication methods, such as phase separation, self-assembly and electrospinning are currently used to obtain nanofibrous scaffolds with a well-organized architecture and mechanical properties suitable for vascular tissue regeneration. However, several studies have shown that naked scaffolds, although fabricated with biocompatible polymers, represent a poor substrate to be populated by vascular cells.
In this respect, surface functionalization with bioactive natural molecules, such as collagen, elastin, fibrinogen, silk fibroin, alginate, chitosan, dextran, glycosaminoglycans GAGs , and growth factors has proven to be effective.
GAGs are complex anionic unbranched heteropolysaccharides that represent major structural and functional ECM components of connective tissues. GAGs are very heterogeneous in terms of type of repeating disaccharide unit, relative molecular mass, charge density, degree and pattern of sulfation, degree of epimerization and physicochemical properties.
These molecules participate in a number of vascular events such as the regulation of vascular permeability, lipid metabolism, hemostasis, and thrombosis, but also interact with vascular cells, growth factors, and cytokines to modulate cell adhesion, migration, and proliferation. The primary goal of this review is to perform a critical analysis of the last twenty-years of literature in which GAGs have been used as molecular cues, able to guide the processes leading to correct endothelialization and neo-artery formation, as well as to provide readers with an overall picture of their potential as functional molecules for small-diameter vascular regeneration.
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Cardiovascular diseases are a group of disorders affecting heart and blood vessels that represent a significant global health problem, being the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the world. In acute clinical events, such as heart attack and stroke, mainly caused by the atherosclerosis of coronaries, carotid, and cerebral arteries, have been the cause of Atherosclerosis is a chronic systemic inflammatory condition with a very complex etiology in which both genetic e.
