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Elkhoury K, Kodeih S, Enciso-Martínez E, Maziz A, Bergaud C. Advancing Cardiomyocyte Maturation: Current Strategies and Promising Conductive Polymer-Based Approaches. Adv Healthc Mater 2024; 13:e2303288. [PMID: 38349615 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202303288] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2023] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024]
Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are a leading cause of mortality and pose a significant burden on healthcare systems worldwide. Despite remarkable progress in medical research, the development of effective cardiovascular drugs has been hindered by high failure rates and escalating costs. One contributing factor is the limited availability of mature cardiomyocytes (CMs) for accurate disease modeling and drug screening. Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived CMs offer a promising source of CMs; however, their immature phenotype presents challenges in translational applications. This review focuses on the road to achieving mature CMs by summarizing the major differences between immature and mature CMs, discussing the importance of adult-like CMs for drug discovery, highlighting the limitations of current strategies, and exploring potential solutions using electro-mechano active polymer-based scaffolds based on conductive polymers. However, critical considerations such as the trade-off between 3D systems and nutrient exchange, biocompatibility, degradation, cell adhesion, longevity, and integration into wider systems must be carefully evaluated. Continued advancements in these areas will contribute to a better understanding of cardiac diseases, improved drug discovery, and the development of personalized treatment strategies for patients with cardiovascular disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kamil Elkhoury
- LAAS-CNRS, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, F-31400, France
| | - Sacha Kodeih
- Faculty of Medicine and Medical Sciences, University of Balamand, Tripoli, P.O. Box 100, Lebanon
| | | | - Ali Maziz
- LAAS-CNRS, Université de Toulouse, CNRS, Toulouse, F-31400, France
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Cumberland MJ, Euchner J, Azad AJ, T N Vo N, Kirchhof P, Holmes AP, Denning C, Gehmlich K. Generation of a human iPSC-derived cardiomyocyte/fibroblast engineered heart tissue model. F1000Res 2024; 12:1224. [PMID: 38298530 PMCID: PMC10828555 DOI: 10.12688/f1000research.139482.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/02/2024] Open
Abstract
Animal models have proven integral to broadening our understanding of complex cardiac diseases but have been hampered by significant species-dependent differences in cellular physiology. Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) have shown great promise in the modelling of cardiac diseases despite limitations in functional and structural maturity. 3D stem cell-derived cardiac models represent a step towards mimicking the intricate microenvironment present in the heart as an in vitro model. Incorporation of non-myocyte cell types, such as cardiac fibroblasts, into engineered heart tissue models (EHTs) can help better recapitulate the cell-to-cell and cell-to-matrix interactions present in the human myocardium. Integration of human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiac fibroblasts (hiPSC-CFs) and hiPSC-CM into EHT models enables the generation of a genetically homogeneous modelling system capable of exploring the abstruse structural and electrophysiological interplay present in cardiac pathophysiology. Furthermore, the construction of more physiologically relevant 3D cardiac models offers great potential in the replacement of animals in heart disease research. Here we describe efficient and reproducible protocols for the differentiation of hiPSC-CMs and hiPSC-CFs and their subsequent assimilation into EHTs. The resultant EHT consists of longitudinally arranged iPSC-CMs, incorporated alongside hiPSC-CFs. EHTs with both hiPSC-CMs and hiPSC-CFs exhibit slower beating frequencies and enhanced contractile force compared to those composed of hiPSC-CMs alone. The modified protocol may help better characterise the interplay between different cell types in the myocardium and their contribution to structural remodelling and cardiac fibrosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Max J Cumberland
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Jonas Euchner
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
- Centre of Membrane Proteins and Receptors, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Amar J Azad
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Nguyen T N Vo
- Biodiscovery Institute, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, England, NG7 2RD, UK
| | - Paulus Kirchhof
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
- Department of Cardiology, University Heart and Vascular Center Hamburg, Universitat Hamburg, Hamburg, Hamburg, 20251, Germany
| | - Andrew P Holmes
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
| | - Chris Denning
- Biodiscovery Institute, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, England, NG7 2RD, UK
| | - Katja Gehmlich
- Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, England, B15 2TT, UK
- Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, England, OX3 9DU, UK
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