From Human Pluripotent Stem Cells to 3D Cardiac Microtissues: Progress, Applications and Challenges

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Biology
• Stem Cell Biology
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are vital for generating cardiomyocytes (CMs) and other cardiac cells.
• Advancements in directed differentiation protocols have improved cardiac cell generation from hPSCs.
• Cardiac cell differentiation has progressed from 2D cultures to complex 3D multicellular cardiac microtissues (MTs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the current state of cardiac cell generation from hPSCs.
• To evaluate the impact of transitioning CM differentiation from 2D to 3D environments.
• To highlight methods for generating 3D cardiac MTs and their applications.

Main Methods:

• Review of existing literature on hPSC-derived cardiac cells.
• Analysis of 2D to 3D culture transition in CM differentiation.
• Examination of methods for 3D cardiac MT formation.
• Assessment of in vitro applications and high-throughput screening adaptations.

Main Results:

• Directed differentiation protocols effectively generate various cardiac cells from hPSCs.
• 3D cardiac microtissues offer enhanced potential for studying cardiac disorders in vitro.
• 3D models are increasingly adopted for drug screening and cardiotoxicity testing.

Conclusions:

• The transition to 3D cardiac microtissues represents a significant advancement in cardiac cell modeling.
• These multicellular models improve the study of cardiac diseases and facilitate drug development.
• Adaptation to high-throughput screening settings broadens the clinical relevance of hPSC-derived cardiac models.