Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Cardiac Spheroids as in vitro Bioengineered Heart Tissues to Study Human Heart Pathophysiology
Published on: January 23, 2021
Bioengineering adult human heart tissue: How close are we?
Richard J Mills1, James E Hudson1
1QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland 4006, Australia.
Abstract:
Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) have extensive applications in fundamental biology, regenerative medicine, disease modelling, and drug discovery/toxicology. Whilst large numbers of cardiomyocytes can be generated from hPSCs, extensive characterization has revealed that they have immature cardiac properties. This has raised potential concerns over their usefulness for many applications and has led to the pursuit of driving maturation of hPSC-cardiomyocytes. Currently, the best approach for driving maturity is the use of tissue engineering to generate highly functional three-dimensional heart tissue. Although we have made significant progress in this area, we have still not generated heart tissue that fully recapitulates all the properties of an adult heart. Deciphering the processes driving cardiomyocyte maturation will be instrumental in uncovering the mechanisms that govern optimal heart function and identifying new therapeutic targets for heart disease.
Related Concept Videos
Anatomy of the Heart
Anatomy of the Heart
The heart has three layers: the innermost endocardium, the muscular myocardium, and the outer epicardium, all working together for optimal cardiac function.
Chambers of the Heart
The heart is made up of four...
Close Relationships and Culture
Friendships and Close Friendships
Open and closed-loop control systems
An open-loop control system operates without feedback from the output. It consists of two primary elements: the controller and the controlled process. The controller receives an input signal...
Adult Stem Cells

