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Conductive Polymers for Cardiovascular Applications

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Nanoscale Engineering of Biomaterials: Properties and Applications

Abstract

The prevalence of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) has taken a sharp rise, accounting for almost 25% of the total fatalities globally. Fortunately, the advances in therapeutic and diagnostic technologies have also been keeping up to tackle this rising challenge. The technologies based on biocompatible conductive polymers, which can be processed as composite films, nanofibers, hydrogels, and composite scaffolds, are attracting increasing interest. This chapter is focused on evaluating the role of biocompatible conductive polymers in addressing CVDs from diagnostic and therapeutic perspectives. Depending on their chemical nature, polymers can exhibit both electronic (π-conjugated polymers) and ionic conductivities (ion conductive polymers). Materials, based either entirely on conductive polymers or on their combination with other nanomaterials, are being engineered for application in addressing various CVDs. These applications include cardiac tissue engineering for treating myocardial infarction, improving the human cardiac myocyte attachment, proliferation, interaction, expression of cardiac-specific proteins, and developing conductive cardiac patches. In addition, conductive polymers based technologies are being developed for microenvironment regulation to enhance the action potential in the cardiac cells and cell-to-cell communication, nerve regeneration and repair via prosthesis electrode-tissue interface, wound healing by inducing angiogenesis, sensing of biomarkers related to cardiac failure, and monitoring and augmenting heart activity by supplying electrical signals via implantable devices. Despite significant progress, there remain challenges blocking the way for the clinical translation of these conductive polymer based technologies. In this chapter, we have reviewed some state-of-the-art developments providing a structure and property relationship that makes this particular class of polymers especially suitable for addressing CVDs.

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Acknowledgment

B.Y. acknowledges support from HFSP (RGY0074/2016), HEC for NRPU (Project No. 20-1740/R&D/10/3368, 20-1799/R&D/10-5302, and 5922), TDF-033 grants, and LUMS for start-up fund and FIF grants.

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  1. Department of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering (SBASSE), Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Lahore, Pakistan

    Azka Arshad, Hafsa Irfan, Sunniya Iftikhar & Basit Yameen

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  1. Azka Arshad
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  2. Hafsa Irfan
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  3. Sunniya Iftikhar
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  4. Basit Yameen
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Correspondence to Basit Yameen .

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  1. Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati, Guwahati, Assam, India

    Lalit M. Pandey

  2. School of Pharmacy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, UK

    Abshar Hasan

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Arshad, A., Irfan, H., Iftikhar, S., Yameen, B. (2022). Conductive Polymers for Cardiovascular Applications. In: Pandey, L.M., Hasan, A. (eds) Nanoscale Engineering of Biomaterials: Properties and Applications . Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-16-3667-7_12

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