Cell therapy, 3D culture systems and tissue engineering for cardiac regeneration

• Published in: Advanced drug delivery reviews Vol. 69-70; pp. 254 - 269
• Main Authors: Emmert, Maximilian Y., Hitchcock, Robert W., Hoerstrup, Simon P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier B.V 01.04.2014
• Subjects: Animals; Bioreactors; Cardiac cell therapy; Cardiac tissue engineering; Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy - methods; Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy - trends; Heart - physiology; Humans; Myocardial Ischemia - physiopathology; Myocardial Ischemia - therapy; Myocardial regeneration; Myocytes, Cardiac - physiology; Regeneration - physiology; Regenerative Medicine - methods; Regenerative Medicine - trends; Stem cells; Three dimensional culture systems; Tissue Engineering - methods; Tissue Engineering - trends; Myocardial regeneration; Three dimensional culture systems; Cardiac cell therapy; Bioreactors; Cardiac tissue engineering; Stem cells
• ISSN: 0169-409X; 1872-8294
• DOI: 10.1016/j.addr.2013.12.004

Ischemic Heart Disease (IHD) still represents the “Number One Killer” worldwide accounting for the death of numerous patients. However the capacity for self-regeneration of the adult heart is very limited and the loss of cardiomyocytes in the infarcted heart leads to continuous adverse cardiac-remodeling which often leads to heart-failure (HF). The concept of regenerative medicine comprising cell-based therapies, bio-engineering technologies and hybrid solutions has been proposed as a promising next-generation approach to address IHD and HF. Numerous strategies are under investigation evaluating the potential of regenerative medicine on the failing myocardium including classical cell-therapy concepts, three-dimensional culture techniques and tissue-engineering approaches. While most of these regenerative strategies have shown great potential in experimental studies, the translation into a clinical setting has either been limited or too rapid leaving many key questions unanswered. This review summarizes the current state-of-the-art, important challenges and future research directions as to regenerative approaches addressing IHD and resulting HF. [Display omitted]