Metformin improves the angiogenic potential of human CD34 + cells co-incident with downregulating CXCL10 and TIMP1 gene expression and increasing VEGFA under hyperglycemia and hypoxia within a therapeutic window for myocardial infarction

Background Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with diabetes mellitus (DM). To identify the most effective treatment for CVD, it is paramount to understand the mechanism behind cardioprotective therapies. Although metformin has been shown to reduce CVD in Type-2 DM clinical trials, the underlying mechanism remains unexplored. CD34+ cell-based therapies offer a new treatment approach to CVD. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of metformin on the angiogenic properties of CD34+ cells under conditions mimicking acute myocardial infarction in diabetes.