Cell Replacement Therapy In The Heart: Fiction Or A Real Possibility. An Animal Experiment Approach

Transmural cryolesions of a defined size were generated on the free left ventricular wall M mice. Using this approach, reproducible myocardial infarctions with a predictable decrease in myocardial function were generated. The potency of cellular cardiomyoplasty, employing different stem and progenitor cells, to improve contractility and impair electrical vulnerability was investigated. In-tramyocardially injected fetal cardiomyocytes engrafted, showed further differentiation, increased left ventricular function and improved mid-term survival of the animals. Connexin 43 expressing cells coupled electrically to the host myocardium and reduced inducibility of ventricular arrhythmias.