Abstract 15738: Electrical Stimulation Enhances Efficiency of Cardiac Differentiation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells by Regulating P38 Map Kinase

Background: Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) can efficiently differentiate into functional cardiomyocytes through embryoid body (EB) differentiation in the presence of specific differentiation signals (e.g. TGF-β, Wnts). Recent studies have indicated that electrical stimulation (EleS) can enhance proliferation and differentiation efficacy in various stem cells. This study investigated the effects of EleS on human iPSC differentiation into cardiomyocytes and explored the underlying mechanisms. Methods and Results: The classical hanging-drop method was used to induce EB formation from human iPSCs. EBs were then treated with or without EleS (1-1.5 V/1.8 cm with 5ms biphasic square wave pulses at 5 Hz) for 1 to 30 days. The percentage of contracting EBs as well as contraction rate was examined. EBs started to beat at 2 days after EleS while spontaneous beating cells without EleS appeared at 7 days. In addition, the percentage of contracting cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) and contraction rate were signif...