An electrically coupled tissue-engineered cardiomyocyte scaffold improves cardiac function in rats with chronic heart...

Area of Science:

• Regenerative Medicine
• Biomedical Engineering
• Cardiovascular Research

Background:

• Ischemic heart disease necessitates innovative treatments.
• Tissue-engineered cardiac constructs offer a promising therapeutic strategy.
• This study focuses on an angiogenic, biodegradable scaffold with neonatal cardiomyocytes for chronic heart failure (CHF).

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate a neonatal cardiomyocyte (NCM)-seeded 3D fibroblast construct (3DFC) in vitro.
• To assess the NCM-3DFC's potential to restore left ventricular (LV) function in a rat model of CHF in vivo.

Main Methods:

• In vitro assessment of NCM-3DFC for functional gap junctions and contractile properties.
• In vivo implantation of NCM-3DFC in a rat model of chronic heart failure (CHF).
• Evaluation of LV function parameters at 3 and 18 weeks post-implantation.

Main Results:

• NCM-3DFC exhibited extensive cell-cell connectivity and spontaneous, coordinated contractions in vitro.
• Implantation of NCM-3DFC significantly improved LV ejection fraction, cardiac index, and pressures in rats with CHF.
• Long-term (18 weeks) implantation demonstrated sustained improvements in cardiac function.

Conclusions:

• A multicellular, electromechanically organized cardiomyocyte scaffold can be engineered in vitro.
• This NCM-seeded 3DFC construct effectively improves long-term left ventricular function in a preclinical model of CHF.