[Myocardial regeneration therapy for heart failure: hepatocyte growth factor enhances the effect of cellular cardiomyoplasty].
BACKGROUND
We hypothesized that transfection of the gene for human hepatocyte growth factor(hHGF) combined with cellular cardiomyoplasty might regenerate the impaired myocardium.


RESULTS
We used a ligation model of proximal left anterior descending coronary artery of Lewis rats. Two weeks after left anterior descending coronary artery ligation, three different treatments were conducted; 1) neonatal rat cardiomyocytes group(10(6) cells, T group, n = 11), 2) HVJ-liposomes bearing the hHGF gene group (H group, n = 10), and 3) combined(T-H group, n = 10). The injection site was the scar area of myocardial infarction. For control, culture medium was injected (C group, n = 13). Echocardiography demonstrated that cardiac performance was significantly ameliorated in the T-H group 4 and 8 weeks after injection. Contrast echocardiography also showed a marked increase in myocardial perfusion in the T-H group but not in the other groups. In the T-H group, neovascularization and a marked reduction of fibrosis were observed histologically. In an immunohistochemical study, strong staining for beta 1-integrin, alpha- and beta-dystroglycan were found principally in the basement membrane of myocytes in the T-H group 8 weeks after transplantation, although there was weak immunoreactivity in the T group.


CONCLUSIONS
hHGF gene transfection enhanced the cellular cardiomyoplasty possibly by stimulating angiogenesis, restoring the impaired extracellular matrix, and promoting the integration of the dissociated grafted myocytes. The combined effects might have lead to the improved cardiac performance. Thus, combined therapy may be a promising strategy for the treatment of heart failure caused by myocardial infarction.
Miyagawa
Shigeru
S
Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, Department of Surgery, Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, Yamada-oka 2-2, Suita, Osaka 565-0871.
Sawa
Yoshiki
Y
Taketani
Satoshi
S
Kawaguchi
Naomasa
N
Nakamura
Toshikazu
T
Matsuura
Nariaki
N
Matsuda
Hikaru
H
D000818:Animals; D006321:Heart / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics*; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000637:transplantation*; D051381:Rats; D011917:Rats, Inbred Lew; D012038:Regeneration; D014162:Transfection
D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor