Cardiac Cell Therapy for Heart Repair: Should the Cells Be Left Out?
Dashuai Zhu1,2, Ke Cheng1,2
1Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences and Comparative Medicine Institute, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA.
Insights
Cardiovascular disease causes significant cardiomyocyte loss, leading to heart failure. Regenerative medicine and biomedical engineering offer promising strategies for cardiac repair and restoring heart function.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Regenerative Medicine
- Cardiovascular Research
Background:
- Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading global cause of death.
- Myocardial infarction (MI) results in substantial cardiomyocyte loss and fibrotic scarring.
- Cardiac remodeling, driven by scar dysfunction and lack of endogenous regeneration, leads to heart failure.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review current therapeutic approaches for cardiac repair.
- To discuss novel strategies for heart regeneration and functional restoration.
- To provide a perspective on future research and clinical translation in cardiac repair.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of current and emerging cardiac repair strategies.
- Analysis of cellular and acellular products in combination with biomaterials.
- Discussion of molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying heart repair.
Main Results:
- Significant progress in understanding heart repair mechanisms.
- Development of diverse therapeutic strategies including cell-based and acellular approaches.
- Identification of novel avenues for research and clinical application.
Conclusions:
- Current strategies aim to repair damaged hearts and restore function.
- Regenerative medicine and biomedical engineering hold significant potential for treating heart failure.
- Further research is crucial for clinical translation of novel cardiac repair therapies.
Abstract:
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is still the leading cause of death worldwide. Coronary artery occlusion, or myocardial infarction (MI) causes massive loss of cardiomyocytes. The ischemia area is eventually replaced by a fibrotic scar. From the mechanical dysfunctions of the scar in electronic transduction, contraction and compliance, pathological cardiac dilation and heart failure develops. Once end-stage heart failure occurs, the only option is to perform heart transplantation. The sequential changes are termed cardiac remodeling, and are due to the lack of endogenous regenerative actions in the adult human heart. Regenerative medicine and biomedical engineering strategies have been pursued to repair the damaged heart and to restore normal cardiac function. Such strategies include both cellular and acellular products, in combination with biomaterials. In addition, substantial progress has been made to elucidate the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying heart repair and regeneration. In this review, we summarize and discuss current therapeutic approaches for cardiac repair and provide a perspective on novel strategies that holding potential opportunities for future research and clinical translation.
