SCIENTISTS SUCCESSFULLY ENGINEER HEART TISSUE

 

New data presented at the World Congress of Cardiology

BEIJING, 18 JUNE 2010.  Scientists in China have successfully engineered myocardial tissue (heart muscle) that is likely to share structural and functional similarities with natural myocardium according to new data presented today at the World Congress of Cardiology (WCC) Scientific Sessions in Beijing, China. 

Heart disease can lead to damage or death of heart muscle, which can cause a heart attack and/or eventually lead to heart failure.  Pharmacologic and interventional treatment can decelerate but not stop the progression of heart failure and for many patients a heart transplant is their only hope.  However, the lack of available donor organs significantly limits the number of heart transplantations that are carried out. Myocardial tissue engineering offers one promising strategy for the future. 

“These data have potentially exiting practical implications for the many people that are in need of a heart transplant, particularly given the global shortness of donor organs that are available,” said Dr. Lv An-Lin, Xijing Hospital of the Fourth Military Medical University.  “There is still a long way to go before the findings from this study reach the hospital setting, but we believe it is a very exciting step in the right direction.”

The study set out to explore the feasibility of constructing engineered myocardial tissue (EMT) in vivo using polylactic acid-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) for scaffold and cardiomyocyte-like cells derived from bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMMSCs) for seeded cells.

Over a period of eight weeks, BMMSCs were first cultured and induced by 5-azacytidine (5-aza) and angiotensin II (Ang II).  The PLGA scaffolds were sterilized and then immersed in buffer solutions.  The BMMSCs were then seeded into the PLGA scaffolds.  The constructs were cultured in an incubator before being implanted into the peritoneal cavity of rats.  Tests were subsequently carried out to analyze the morphology and function of the EMT.  These tests revealed that the EMT did indeed share structural and functional similarities with the native heart muscle.  Moreover the paper concluded that this method is beneficial for constructing EMT.

About the World Congress of Cardiology
The World Congress of Cardiology Scientific Sessions is the official congress of the World Heart Federation and is held every two years. Through the Congress the World Heart Federation offers an international stage for the latest developments in science and public outreach in the field of cardiovascular health. The World Congress of Cardiology places emphasis on the complementary nature of science and public outreach and strives to spread the message that through individual, community and patient-care interventions, the growing epidemic of cardiovascular diseases can be prevented.  www.worldcardiocongress.org

About the World Heart Federation
The World Heart Federation is dedicated to leading the global fight against heart disease and stroke with a focus on low- and middle-income countries via a united community of more than 200 member organizations. With its members, the World Heart Federation works to build global commitment to addressing cardiovascular health at the policy level, generates and exchanges ideas, shares best practice, advances scientific knowledge and promotes knowledge transfer to tackle cardiovascular disease – the world’s number one killer. It is a growing membership organization that brings together the strength of medical societies and heart foundations from more than 100 countries. Through our collective efforts we can help people all over the world to lead longer and better heart-healthy lives. For more information, please visit www.worldheart.org

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