Heart cells made in the lab
Researchers funded partly by us in Bristol have managed to
turn cells from umbilicial cord blood into cells that look like
heart muscle, in the lab.
Growing heart muscle from stem cells is an important early step
in our aim to mend broken hearts after heart
attack. This team, led by heart surgeon Raimondo Ascione, say
their research has overcome technical hurdles to turn cord
blood cells into heart muscle-like cells.
Cord blood is one of a number of potential
cell sources that may be used in future for heart repair.
Other teams are investigating cells from the bone marrow or cells
in the heart itself.
Professor Jeremy Pearson, our Associate
Medical Director, said:
The results are encouraging, but there are still lots of questions to answer
"Regenerative medicine
research in the lab, alongside studies of patients, is absolutely
crucial. Right now, the damage to the heart caused by heart attack
cannot be reversed. Through research like this across the UK, we
hope to bring
our vision of mending broken hearts
to reality.
"There has been interest for some time in
the potential use of blood from the umbilical cord as a source of
stem cells for therapy in a variety of diseases. This study has
shown for the first time that it's possible to turn cord blood stem
cells into cells that look like heart muscle, in the lab. The
results are encouraging, but there are still lots
of questions to answer before we'll know whether these cells can be
used successfully for heart repair in patients."
The research was published in Stem Cell Reviews &
Reports.