Abstract
Effects of long-term continuous electric stimulation on angiogenesis have been investigated for potential therapeutic applications. Evaluation of the effect has been carried out mainly through observation of extracted tissues after the long-term stimulation. The purpose of this study is to observe angiogenesis in vivo under application of electric stimulations. We developed an implantable device equipped with a scaffold, CMOS-camera and electrodes for real-time observation. The scaffolds and electrodes were placed in 2 experimental chambers. The device has 1.3 mega pixel CMOS sensor, auto-focus lenses and white LED as light source. The electrode was consisted of 1.4µm PET film as substrate and 50nm gold as conductor. The device was implanted under the skin of a goat, and get picture and applied the electric stimulations for 60 days. The electric stimulations were applied with a 60 kHz sinusoidal waveform and a current density of 300 uA/mm2. Angiogenesis occurred in 0.1 mm/day in the non-stimulated device, while no angiogenesis was observed in the device without stimulation. These results show that electric stimulations of this condition are effective for suppressing angiogenesis.
