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Mesenchymal stem cells for cardiac regeneration: translation to bedside reality
Mohammad T Elnakish1, Fatemat Hassan, Duaa Dakhlallah
1Department of Physiology and Cell Biology, The Dorothy M. Davis Heart & Lung Research Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210, USA.
Insights
Cardiovascular disease causes millions of deaths globally. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) show promise for heart repair, moving from research to clinical trials for treating heart failure.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Research
- Regenerative Medicine
- Stem Cell Therapy
Background:
- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading global cause of mortality, with heart failure management challenged by limited cardiac self-regeneration.
- Current treatments fail to fully restore lost cardiomyocyte mass or prevent myocardial scarring, necessitating novel therapeutic strategies.
- Gene- and cell-based therapies, including stem cell therapy (cardio-myoplasty), are emerging as promising alternatives for myocardial regeneration.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the therapeutic applications of Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) for cardiac regeneration.
- To explore the transition of MSC-based therapies from preclinical research to clinical application.
- To highlight the potential of MSCs in addressing the limitations of current heart failure treatments.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on stem cell-based therapies for cardiovascular disease.
- Focus on Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) and their characteristics relevant to cardiac repair.
- Analysis of the progression of MSC research from experimental settings to clinical trials.
Main Results:
- Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) possess unique characteristics making them a strong candidate for cardiac regeneration.
- Despite extensive research, the optimal stem cell type for cardiovascular applications remains under investigation.
- MSC-based therapies are progressing towards clinical application for heart failure management.
Conclusions:
- Mesenchymal Stem Cells (MSCs) represent a significant therapeutic avenue for regenerating damaged myocardium and treating ischemic heart disease.
- Further research and clinical translation are crucial to establish MSCs as a standard treatment for heart failure.
- The transition of MSC therapies from bench to bedside offers hope for improving outcomes in cardiovascular disease patients.
Abstract:
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death worldwide. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimate of 17.3 million people died from CVDs in 2008 and by 2030, the number of deaths is estimated to reach almost 23.6 million. Despite the development of a variety of treatment options, heart failure management has failed to inhibit myocardial scar formation and replace the lost cardiomyocyte mass with new functional contractile cells. This shortage is complicated by the limited ability of the heart for self-regeneration. Accordingly, novel management approaches have been introduced into the field of cardiovascular research, leading to the evolution of gene- and cell-based therapies. Stem cell-based therapy (aka, cardiomyoplasty) is a rapidly growing alternative for regenerating the damaged myocardium and attenuating ischemic heart disease. However, the optimal cell type to achieve this goal has not been established yet, even after a decade of cardiovascular stem cell research. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in particular have been extensively investigated as a potential therapeutic approach for cardiac regeneration, due to their distinctive characteristics. In this paper, we focus on the therapeutic applications of MSCs and their transition from the experimental benchside to the clinical bedside.
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