Key points from article :
Hearts damaged by heart attacks pump less efficiently and scar tissue can further reduce heart function.
Prior studies have shown that mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can promote tissue repair after a heart attack.
The immune system perceives MSCs as foreign, starts clearing them out.
Researchers develop encapsulation technologies that are designed not to activate the immune system.
“We can load MSCs within these hydrogels, and the wound-healing factors just diffuse out" - Omid Veiseh, lead author
Capsules in the study were held in place by the pericardium, a membrane that sheaths the heart.
Researchers found heart healing was 2.5 times greater in animals treated with shielded stem cells.
Combination of biomaterials and stem cells could be useful in delivering reparative therapy to heart attack patients.
Research by Rice University and BCM published in Royal Society of Chemistry journal.
