title: Myocardial regeneration potential of adipose tissue-derived stem cells.
abstract: Various tissue resident stem cells are receiving attention from basic scientists and clinicians as they hold promise for myocardial regeneration. For practical reasons, adipose tissue-derived stem cells (ASCs) are attractive cells for clinical application in repairing damaged myocardium based on the following advantages: abundant adipose tissue in most patients and easy accessibility with minimally invasive lipoaspiration procedure. Several recent studies have demonstrated that both cultured and freshly isolated ASCs could improve cardiac function in animal model of myocardial infarction. The mechanisms underlying the beneficial effect of ASCs on myocardial regeneration are not fully understood. Growing evidence indicates that transplantation of ASCs improve cardiac function via the differentiation into cardiomyocytes and vascular cells, and through paracrine pathways. Paracrine factors secreted by injected ASCs enhance angiogenesis, reduce cell apoptosis rates, and promote neuron sprouts in damaged myocardium. In addition, Injection of ASCs increases electrical stability of the injured heart. Furthermore, there are no reported cases of arrhythmia or tumorigenesis in any studies regarding myocardial regeneration with ASCs. This review summarizes the characteristics of both cultured and freshly isolated stem cells obtained from adipose tissue, their myocardial regeneration potential, and the underlying mechanisms for beneficial effect on cardiac function, and safety issues.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Pathology, The University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, 1515 Holcombe, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
authors.forename: Xiaowen
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Eckhard
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alt
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000166:cytology; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000601:surgery*; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002469:Cell Separation; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D012038:Regeneration; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*