Mesenchymal stem cell therapy in heart disease

Abstract

Cardiovascular disease is among the main causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide. Despite significant advances in medical and interventional therapy, the prognosis of conditions such as ischemic heart disease is still dismal. There is thus a need to investigate new therapeutic tools, one of which is stem cell therapy. Hematopoietic stem cells are the most studied type, and the fact that their biology is relatively well understood has led to their being used in preclinical research and clinical trials. However, the results of some of these studies have been controversial, which has opened the way for studies on other cell types, such as mesenchymal stem cells. These cells have immunomodulatory properties which suggest that they have therapeutic potential in cardiology. In the present article, the authors review the state of the art regarding mesenchymal stem cells, from basic and translational research to their use in clinical trials on ischemic heart disease, heart failure and arrhythmias, and discuss possible future uses. © 2012 Sociedade Portuguesa de Cardiologia. Published by Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved. PALAVRAS-CHAVE Terapia celular cardíaca com células mesenquimatosasResumo A doença cardiovascular é uma das principais causas de mortalidade e morbilidade em todo o mundo e, apesar de os avanços na terapêutica médica e intervenção percutânea, o prognóstico de doenças como a cardiopatia isquémica e o pós-enfarte do miocárdio continuam a ser consideravelmente inferiores ao desejado. Essa situação justifica a aposta na investigação de novas ferramentas terapêuticas, como é o caso da terapia com células estaminais. O conhecimento mais vasto das células de linhagem hematopoiética levou à sua utilização numa primeira fase, tanto em investigação pré-clínica como clínica. A existência de alguns resultados controversos e de uma melhoria correspondente às expectativas iniciais abriu a caminho a outros tipos celulares com potencial terapêutico, como é o caso das células precursoras do mesênquima. Estas células têm características imunomoduladoras que lhes conferem um racional de utilidade terapêutica em várias áreas da Cardiologia. Neste artigo, os autores efetuam a revisão do estado da arte relativo à utilização de células precursoras do mesênquima, desde a sua investigação ଝ Please cite this article as: Lopes, JP; Terapia celular cardíaca com células mesenquimatosas. Rev Port Cardiol 2012. http://dx

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