IP Library › Granted Patent US 12,277,866
Granted Patent B2
US 12,277,866 · App. 17/193,910 · Granted Apr 15, 2025

Organosynthetic dynamic heart model

Inventors: Clara Park (Cambridge, MA); Xuanhe Zhao (Cambridge, MA); Hyunwoo Yuk (Cambridge, MA); Christopher Tam Nguyen (Cambridge, MA); Ellen T. Roche (Cambridge, MA)
Assignees: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY; THE GENERAL HOSPITAL CORPORATION
G09B23/306G09B23/30G09B23/32B33Y80/00G01N3/08G01N3/32G01N2203/0005G01N2203/0017G01N2203/0062G01N2203/0091
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 12,277,866
App. No.
17/193,910
Granted
Apr 15, 2025
Kind
B2
Abstract

A biorobotic hybrid heart that preserves organic intracardiac structures and mimics cardiac motion by image-guided replication of the cardiac myofiber architecture of the left ventricle with an active synthetic myocardium that drives the motion of the heart. The active soft tissue mimic is adhered to the organic endocardial tissue in a helical fashion using a custom-designed adhesive to form a flexible, conformable, and watertight organosynthetic interface.

Claims (45)

1. A biohybrid heart comprising

organic endocardial tissue scaffold comprising one or more intact intracardiac structures from an explanted heart, and

synthetic myocardium,

wherein the endocardial tissue scaffold and synthetic myocardium is combined to form an explanted heart with myocardial tissue and one or more intact intracardiac structures and passive or active synthetic myocardium.

2. The heart of claim 1 comprising endocardial tissue selected from the group consisting of heart valve leaflets, and heart chordae.

3. The heart of claim 1 functioning as a biorobotic hybrid heart with accurate anatomical details, comprising valves, papillary muscles, moderator bands, chordae tendineae, vessels, and ventricular walls.

4. The heart of claim 1 exhibiting complex three-dimensional cardiac motion and a physiological level of contractile motion.

5. The heart of claim 4 exhibiting complex three-dimensional cardiac motion, a physiological level of contractile motion, and engagement of the interventricular septum.

6. The heart of claim 1 comprising synthetic myocardium exhibiting three-dimensional contraction resulting in the reduction of one or more chamber volumes.

7. The heart of claim 1 having physiological hemodynamic performance.

8. The heart of claim 1 comprising organic myocardial tissue removed or separated from endocardial tissue.

9. The heart of claim 1 , wherein the synthetic myocardium is passive.

10. The heart of claim 9 , wherein the synthetic myocardium is formed of a soft silicone elastomer.

11. The heart of claim 1 , wherein the synthetic myocardium is active.

12. The heart of claim 11 , wherein the active synthetic myocardium drives the motion of the heart.

13. The heart of claim 1 wherein the endocardial tissue scaffold is unfolded from the entire ventricular myocardial tissue.

14. The heart of claim 1 comprising individual soft robotic actuators in the synthetic myocardium to create cardiac motion.

15. The heart of claim 1 wherein the endocardial tissue scaffold is adhered to the synthetic myocardium to form a soft, flexible, conformable, and watertight organosynthetic interface.

16. The heart of claim 1 comprising an array of programmable linearly contracting soft robotic actuators to mimic the native heart anisotropy.

17. The heart of claim 16 comprising an array of programmable linearly contracting soft robotic actuators formed by molding, casting or three dimensional printing.

18. The heart of claim 16 wherein the actuators are soft actuators.

19. The heart of claim 16 comprising flat pleated pneumatic artificial muscles comprising orientable fine fiber reinforcement to mimic the native heart tissue anisotropy.

20. The heart of claim 1 having accurate anatomical details, including valves, papillary muscles, moderator bands, chordae tendineae, vessels, and ventricular walls, and exhibiting complex three-dimensional cardiac motion, a physiological level of contractile motion, and engagement of the interventricular septum.

21. The heart of claim 1 comprising a programmable, soft robotic matrix comprising orientable actuators to mimic the cardiac tissue fibers of the native myocardium.

22. The heart of claim 1 comprising an electropneumatic control system.

23. The heart of claim 1 wherein the adhesive has the structure

wherein, R is NH, O, or S, optionally wherein the termini are connected to a polymeric substrate substrate or tissue.

24. The biohybrid heart of claim 1 wherein the endocardial tissue scaffold and synthetic myocardium is combined to form an explanted heart with myocardial tissue and one or more intact intracardiac structures and passive and active synthetic myocardium.

25. A method of making a biorobotic hybrid heart comprising

combining an organic endocardial tissue scaffold comprising one or more intact intracardiac structures from an explanted heart and synthetic myocardium.

26. The method of claim 25 comprising

providing organic endocardial tissue from a preserved explanted heart with intact intracardiac structures and without myocardial tissue,

providing explanted heart tissue that is dissected and unraveled to form a flat, helical ventricular myocardial band,

using diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging of the intact and unraveled heart to guide the development of a synthetic myocardial substitute,

forming the synthetic myocardial substitute,

rewrapping the flat, helical ventricular myocardial band in the synthetic mycocardial band and

adhering the organic and synthetic structures together to form a biorobotic hybrid heart.

27. The method of claim 26 comprising incorporating into the synthetic myocardium individual soft robotic actuators formed using molding, casting or three dimensional printing.

28. The method of claim 26 comprising incorporating into the heart an array of flat pleated soft pneumatic artificial muscle whose fine fiber reinforcement is orientable to mimic the native heart tissue anisotropy.

29. The method of claim 26 comprising incorporating into the synthetic myocardium individual soft robotic actuators to create cardiac motion.

30. The method of claim 26 comprising incorporating into the heart an array of soft pneumatic artificial muscle.

31. The method of claim 26 wherein the endocardial tissue scaffold is made from tissue, from decellularized tissue, from biopolymers, or 3D printed scaffolds.

32. The method of claim 26 comprising providing a programmable, soft robotic matrix comprising orientable linear actuators to mimic the cardiac tissue fibers of the organic myocardial tissue.

33. The method of claim 26 comprising providing an electropneumatic control system.

34. The heart of claim 1 comprising endocardial tissue selected from the group consisting of heart valve leaflets, heart chordae from an explanted heart and intracardiac components formed of synthetic materials.

Assignments (3)
CONFIRMATORY LICENSE Recorded May 3, 2022
From: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
To: NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Reel/Frame 059846/0957 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Mar 10, 2022
From: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
To: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY; THE GENERAL HOSPITAL CORPORATION
Reel/Frame 059224/0520 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Jun 30, 2021
From: PARK, CLARA; ZHAO, XUANHE; YUK, HYUNWOO; NGUYEN, CHRISTOPHER TAM; ROCHE, ELLEN T.
To: MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Reel/Frame 056721/0548 →
Continuity (2)
Provisional Application 63021014 · May 6, 2020
Related Publication 20210350725A1 · Nov 11, 2021
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