"Revolutionary Heart Valve Technology: Growing and Controlling Blood Flow in Minutes"
Harvard researchers have developed a synthetic heart valve called FibraValve that can be manufactured in minutes using a spun-fiber method. The valve's delicate flaps can be shaped on a microscopic level and can be colonized by the patient's living cells, developing with them as they mature. The valve uses a new custom polymer material called PLCL that can last inside a patient's body for about six months. The long-term vision is for the resulting organic tissue to develop with human children as they mature, potentially voiding the need for risky replacement surgeries as their bodies grow.