Along with Belgian collaborators, investigators from the Mao Clinic have shown that when logically “guided”, human adult stem cells can successfully repair, regenerate and heal heart tissue that has been damaged. The findings, which have also been termed as a “landmark work” in an accompanying editorial, have appeared in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology. Normally, stems cells that are separated from patients have a restricted capacity to repair the heart. This pioneering technology heightens the regenerative advantage by programming adult stem cells to gain a cardiac-like profile.
Prepared by a mixture of recombinant cardiogenic growth factors, mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) gathered from the bone marrow of a group of patients who suffered from coronary artery disease, demonstrated high quality functional and structural advantage without harmful side effects over a one year follow-up in a model of heart failure in accordance to the study.
Significance of Findings
Andre Terzic, M.D., PhD., who is a researcher at Mayo Clinic as well as the leading investigator of the study that was carried out, is of view that these findings offer proof-of-principle that “intelligent” adult stem cells have supplementary benefit in the reparation of the heart, thus providing the basis for advanced clinical evaluation. Moreover, the first author of the study, Atta Behfar, M.D., PhD. explains that the efficient use of guided “lineage specified” human stem cells is founded on natural cardiogenic cues. The pre-clinical information that has been reported in this decisive paper have cleaned the way for feasibility and safety trials in human beings, which were carried out in Europe recently.
Konstantinos Malliaras, M.D., and Eduardo Marban, M.D., Ph.D., of the Cedars-Sinai Heart Institute that is found in Los Angeles, described the Mayo approach as being similar to a “boot camp” for stem cells, in their editorial. Furthermore they wrote that the study has provided the very first convincing proof that MSCs, at least in vitro, have the capability in reality to become functional cardiomyocytes (heart cells).
The lasting potential of the findings consist of developing a successful regenerative medicine therapy for the patients who suffer from chronic heart failure.
The way it was done
Firstly, the researchers found bone marrow-derived stem cells from patients who suffer from heart disease and who are undergoing coronary bypass surgery. These stem cells were examined and they showed that cells from two out of eleven persons have a rare capacity to repair the heart. These unique cells illustrated that there were up regulated genetic transcription factors that assisted in identifying a molecular signature which in turn identified highly regenerative stem cells. This cardiogenic concoction was subsequently made used to induce this signature in non-reparative patient stem cells in order to program their ability to repair the heart.
The mouse models with heart failure that were injected with these cells showed considerable recovery of the heart function along with an enhanced survival rate after a period of one year as compared to those that were being treated with unguided stem cells or saline.
Specifically, the researchers discovered that the heart tissue healed more successfully; that human vascular and cardiac cells were seen to be participating in the repair, regeneration and strengthening of heart structures in the area surrounding the injury; and finally that the vestiges and scars of the heart damage seemed to fade away.
Source: Mayo Clinic & E-science News
Tue, Aug 17, 2010
Nanotechnology, Stem cells