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Updated: Jun 6, 2025
A Hydrogel Construct and Fibrin-based Glue Approach to Deliver Therapeutics in a Murine Myocardial Infarction Model.
Published on: June 14, 2015
Hydrogel-based cardiac patches for myocardial infarction therapy: Recent advances and challenges
Zhenqiu Liu1, Zhi Zheng1, Jiahao Xie1
1Hunan Province Cooperative Innovation Center for Molecular Target New Drug Study & School of Pharmaceutical Science, Hengyang Medical School, University of South China, 28 W Changsheng Road, Hengyang, 421001, China.
Insights
Hydrogel cardiac patches offer promising Myocardial Infarction (MI) treatment by remodeling the cardiac microenvironment. This review details design strategies for effective hydrogel patch adhesion and fabrication, addressing current limitations.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Cardiovascular Research
- Regenerative Medicine
Background:
- Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of cardiovascular death, with limited cardiomyocyte repair capacity.
- Current hydrogel cardiac patches face challenges with attachment methods like suturing and adhesives, causing further damage or uneven drug delivery.
- The pathological microenvironment post-MI requires specific adaptations for effective therapeutic intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To systematically review the advantages and disadvantages of hydrogel patches for treating myocardial infarction.
- To elucidate various design strategies for hydrogel patches, focusing on microenvironment adaptation and adhesion mechanisms.
- To provide theoretical guidance for developing novel therapeutic strategies for MI.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of hydrogel patch applications in myocardial infarction treatment.
- Analysis of pathological microenvironment changes following MI.
- Discussion of biomimetic hydrogel designs, functionalization, and fabrication techniques.
- Emphasis on wet adhesion strategies and attachment mechanisms for cardiac patches.
Main Results:
- Hydrogel patches show potential for improving mechanical properties, conductivity, and microenvironment remodeling post-MI.
- Critique of current attachment methods (suturing, adhesives) and their limitations.
- Exploration of advanced hydrogel designs for better adhesion and targeted therapeutic delivery.
Conclusions:
- Hydrogel patches represent a promising therapeutic avenue for MI, but require optimized design and attachment strategies.
- Further research into biomimetic designs and effective adhesion mechanisms is crucial for clinical translation.
- This review provides a framework for future development of advanced hydrogel-based therapies for cardiac repair.
Abstract:
Myocardial infarction (MI) remains the leading cause of death related to cardiovascular diseases globally, presenting a significant clinical challenge due to the specificity of the lesion site and the limited proliferative capacity of cardiomyocytes (CMs) for repairing the infarcted myocardium. Extensive studies reported so far has focused on the utilization of hydrogel-based cardiac patches for MI treatment, highlighting their promising mechanical properties, conductivity, and ability to remodel the microenvironment post-repair. However, the majority of developed cardiac patches have been limited to the myocardial tissue surface via suturing or adhesive administration. Suturing inevitably leads to additional damage to the fragile myocardium, while uneven application of adhesives may result in patch displacement and compromised drug release. Based on these critical issues, we systematically summarize the advantages and drawbacks of using hydrogel patches for MI treatment with emphasis on elucidating various design strategies. Specifically, we first describe the changes in the pathological microenvironment following MI. Next, we discuss the biomimetic types of hydrogel patches, their functional design, and corresponding strategies for microenvironment adaptation, emphasizing adhesion mechanisms, wet adhesion design strategies, and fabrication techniques for hydrogel patches. Finally, we address the potential challenges and prospects of hydrogels as patches for MI therapy. The review is believed to provide theoretical guidance for the development of new therapeutic strategies for effectively MI treatment.
