A start-up biomedical company is assembling a completely artificial heart which it says will be ready for use by 2011. Backed by the noted French scientist Alain Carpentier, the VC group Truffle, and the French innovation agency, Carmat will develop the new heart in a facility close to Paris.The prosthetic heart uses a biomaterial based on chemically-treated animal tissue and employs technology that has been used to develop replacement heart valves. The prototype heart pumps blood much like the organ itself. It is intended initially for patients with the most severe forms of heart damage. "We are moving from pure research to clinical applications. After 15 years of work, we are handing over to industry to produce an artificial heart usable by man," Carpentier said.