Guinea pig hearts beat with human cells
Transplanted heart cells, grown from stem cells, electrically couple and beat in sync with heart’s own muscle
Researchers have made a major advance in efforts to regenerate damaged hearts.
Grafts of human cardiac muscle cells, grown from embryonic stem cells, coupled electrically and contracted synchronously with host muscle following transplantation in guinea pig hearts.
The grafts also reduced the incidence of arrhythmias (irregular heart rhythms) in a guinea pig model of myocardial infarction (commonly known as a heart attack).
This finding from University of Washington-led research is reported in the Aug. 5 issue of Nature.
Heart regenerative medicine researcher Dr. Michael Laflamme of the University of Washington examines beating heart cells under a microscope. (Credit: Alice C. Gray)
The paper’s senior author, Dr. Michael Laflamme, said, “These results provide strong evidence that human cardiac muscle cell grafts meet physiological criteria for true heart regeneration. This supports the continued development of human embryonic stem cell-based heart therapies for both mechanical and electrical repair of the heart.”
During a myocardial infarction the flow of oxygen-rich blood to the heart muscle is interrupted by formation of a clot, causing death of the down-stream heart muscle and its eventual replacement by scar tissue. This can cause mechanical problems with filling and emptying the heart, and it can also interfere with the electrical signals that pace the heartbeat. (Full Story)
Nature | News
Guinea pig hearts beat with human cells
Cardiac cells derived from human stem cells can integrate into injured hearts.
Damaged skin and liver can often repair themselves, but the heart rarely heals well and heart disease is the world’s leading cause of death. Research published today raises hopes for cell therapies, showing that heart muscle cells differentiated from human embryonic stem cells can integrate into existing heart muscle.
