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Review
. 2025 Feb 26;17(5):620.
doi: 10.3390/polym17050620.

Advances in Conductive Biomaterials for Cardiac Tissue Engineering: Design, Fabrication, and Functional Integration

Tabrej Khan  1 , Gayathri Vadivel  2 , Kalaivani Ayyasamy  2 , Gowtham Murugesan  3 , Tamer A Sebaey  1   4
Affiliations
Review

Advances in Conductive Biomaterials for Cardiac Tissue Engineering: Design, Fabrication, and Functional Integration

Tabrej Khan et al. Polymers (Basel). .

Abstract

Heart failure functions as one of the leading global causes of death because it falls under the cardiovascular disease categories. Cardiac tissue engineering advances by developing new tissues to rebuild heart functions in individuals with damaged heart structures as it gives medical treatment possibilities to patients reaching their final stage. Most of the heart tissue consists of cardiomyocytes which make up between 80 to 90 percent of the total organ space. The cardiomyocytes retain their specialized cell structure which includes elongation, but they align to produce contractions as they span into length. After myocardial infarction, doctors need elastic soft platforms to heal the heart tissue because they mimic its natural attributes. Special consideration must be paid to the material selection for appropriate mechanical properties, given that different substances have separate qualities. Stem cell survival becomes higher, and cell differentiation develops more efficiently when a proper scaffold design is implemented, thus enabling tissue repair. Conductive biomaterials demonstrate the best candidate status for cardiac tissue engineering due to their ability to both convey electrical signals and boost biological actions as well as promote cellular communication. Scientists conduct life science research on stem cells because the cells present unique characteristics. Biomaterials with conductive properties within cardiac tissue engineering help the body recover heart tissue while improving the functionality of damaged structures in the myocardium. This article analyzes various conductive biomaterials used in biomedical practices for cardiac tissue healing applications.

Keywords: biomaterials; cardiac tissue; design and fabrication; functional integration; heart failure.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A schematic representation of the conductive hydrogel integration for cardiac repair.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Schematic diagram of (a) 3D printing and (b) bioprinting.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Diagrammatic illustration of an electrospinning apparatus.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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