Stem Cells for Heart Cell Therapies

Myocardial infarction–induced heart failure is a prevailing cause of death in the United States and most developed countries. The cardiac tissue has extremely limited regenerative potential, and heart transplantation for reconstituting the function of damaged heart is severely hindered mainly due to the scarcity of donor organs. To that end, stem cells with their extensive proliferative capacity and their ability to differentiate toward functional cardiomyocytes may serve as a renewable cellular source for repairing the damaged myocardium. Here, we review recent studies regarding the cardiogenic potential of adult progenitor cells and embryonic stem cells. Although large strides have been made toward the engineering of cardiac tissues using stem cells, important issues remain to be addressed to enable the translation of such technologies to the clinical setting.