title: The rejuvenation of aged stem cells for cardiac repair.
abstract: Rejuvenation is one of the greatest challenges of modern science. Aging affects every tissue and organ in the body, leading to a deterioration of normal function and inhibition of repair mechanisms. Cell therapy has received much attention for its potential to regenerate organs, but in the context of cardiac repair, the initial clinical trials in aged patients did not replicate the dramatic benefits recorded in preclinical studies with young animals. The benefits of autologous cell therapy are reduced in the elderly, the largest target group for regenerative medicine. Adult stem cell functionality decreases with age which impairs tissue regeneration. In this review we discuss the age-related changes in stem cell function, with particular attention to stem cell therapy in heart disease. We also focus on possible mechanisms of adult stem cell aging and targets for rejuvenation strategies to reverse the aging process. We provide useful insights on how to apply this knowledge to advance cellular therapies for heart disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Toronto General Research Institute at the Toronto General Hospital; Division of Cardiac Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ludke
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Toronto General Research Institute at the Toronto General Hospital; Division of Cardiac Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Ren-Ke
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Surgery, McEwen Centre for Regenerative Medicine and Toronto General Research Institute at the Toronto General Hospital; Division of Cardiac Surgery, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Electronic address: rweisel@uhnresearch.ca.
authors.forename: Richard D
authors.initials: RD
authors.lastname: Weisel
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D006331:Heart Diseases / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D044968:Regenerative Medicine / Q000379:methods* / Q000458:organization & administration*; D012060:Rejuvenation / Q000502:physiology*; D033581:Stem Cell Transplantation; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000502:physiology*