Heart Attack: Cell Therapy Shows Promise in Pigs
- A new study suggests a novel approach to heart attack recovery: injecting heart muscle cell spheroids derived from modified human stem cells.
- Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) created human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) that overexpressed cyclin D2 and lacked human leukocyte antigens.
- infarct size, or the area of dead tissue, is a key indicator of heart failure risk.
Early results signal a breakthrough in heart attack recovery. Injecting modified human stem cells shows promise in a pig model, focusing on the role of follistatin in stimulating heart muscle growth after a heart attack. This innovative cell therapy reduced infarct size by 35.8%, sparking hopes for new treatments. researchers at the University of alabama at Birmingham (UAB) found that injected spheroids, while not persisting long-term, triggered the pig’s own heart muscle cells to regenerate. Follistatin,a glycoprotein secreted by the modified cells,fueled this proliferation. News Directory 3 is following this story. With heart failure a major cause of death worldwide, such findings offer a new avenue for treating damaged hearts. Discover what’s next in this exciting research.
Stem Cell Therapy Shows Promise in Heart Attack Recovery
Updated June 23,2025
A new study suggests a novel approach to heart attack recovery: injecting heart muscle cell spheroids derived from modified human stem cells. The research, published in Circulation Research, focuses on the role of follistatin in stimulating the growth of heart muscle cells after a heart attack. The study used a pig model, as pig hearts closely resemble human hearts.
Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) created human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) that overexpressed cyclin D2 and lacked human leukocyte antigens. Thes modified cells, called KO/OEhiPSCs, were then differentiated into cardiomyocyte spheroids. When implanted into pig hearts damaged by ischemia/reperfusion injury, the KO/OEhiPSC-cardiomyocyte implantation substantially improved heart function and reduced infarct size after four weeks.
infarct size, or the area of dead tissue, is a key indicator of heart failure risk. Jianyi “Jay” Zhang, M.D., Ph.D., a lead researcher, noted a significant 35.8% decrease in the infarct area in hearts treated with the modified stem cells, compared to control groups. This highlights the potential of this cell therapy.
The surprising element was the proliferation of the pig’s own heart muscle cells. Mammalian heart muscle cells typically lose their ability to divide shortly after birth. The injected spheroids, while improving heart function, did not persist long-term. Instead,researchers observed increased proliferation of existing pig cardiomyocytes,which normally cannot divide in adult hearts. These cells showed elevated expression of proliferation markers and DNA replication genes.
Further analysis pointed to follistatin, a glycoprotein secreted by the injected KO/OEhiPSC-cardiomyocytes, as the key factor. In cell cultures, human cardiomyocytes treated with follistatin proliferated significantly. In a mouse model,injected follistatin also induced proliferation of adult mouse cardiomyocytes after a heart attack. These findings suggest a new heart attack recovery mechanism.
“To our knowledge, this is the first report demonstrating that follistatin promotes the proliferation of hiPSC-cardiomyocytes and cardiomyocytes from adult mammalian hearts,” Zhang said.
heart failure accounts for 13% of deaths worldwide,with half of patients dying within five years. This research offers a potential new avenue for treating damaged hearts and improving patient outcomes.
What’s next
Further research will focus on deciphering the precise mechanisms by which follistatin activates cardiomyocyte proliferation, paving the way for potential clinical trials.