Generation and Encapsulation of Human iPSC-Derived Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells for Proangiogenic Therapy

iPSC technology is revolutionizing the field of regenerative medicine. The generation of patient-specific cells has huge potential for disease modeling as well as for clinical applications. iPSCs have been used as a renewable source of vascular cells, and in particular vascular smooth muscle cells. The use of these human iPSC-derived vascular smooth muscle cells is attractive for vascular tissue engineering. The cells are used in developing vascular grafts as well as in engineering disease models. Recent studies have shown the proangiogenic potentials of human iPSC-derived vascular smooth muscle cells in treating wounds. Here, we describe the VSMC differentiation protocol from human iPSCs and encapsulation methods in collagen scaffolds to promote proangiogenic potentials.