By IANS,
Washington : Stem cells can regenerate heart tissue and thus repair an enlarged heart, Mayo Clinic investigators have found.
The mingling of embryology and genetic engineering, over the past 20 years, has created transgenic animals whose genome has been deliberately modified for human use.
The current study expands on the use of embryonic stem cells to regenerate tissue and repair damage after heart attacks.
“We’ve shown in this transgenic animal model that embryonic stem cells may offer an option in repairing genetic heart problems,” said Satsuki Yamada, cardiovascular researcher at Mayo and co-author of the study.
“Close evaluation of genetic variations among individuals to identify optimal disease targets and customise stem cells for therapy opens a new era of personalised regenerative medicine,” added Andre Terzic, Mayo cardiologist and co-author and the study’s principal investigator.
Researchers transplanted 200,000 embryonic stem cells into the wall of the left ventricle of mice, engineered to have enlarged hearts. After a month, the treatment improved heart performance, synchronised electrical impulses and stopped heart deterioration, ultimately saving the animal’s life.
Stem cells had grafted into the heart and formed new cardiac tissue. Additionally, the transplantation restarted cell cycle activity and halved the fibrosis that had been developing after the initial damage.
The researchers said their findings show that stem cells can achieve functional repair in non-ischemic (cases other than blood-flow blockages) genetic cardiomyopathy (enlarged heart). Further testing is underway.
These findings appeared online at stemcells.alphamedpress.org/.