Title:Cardiac Stem Cell Characteristics in Physiological and Pathological Conditions
VOLUME: 24 ISSUE: 26
Author(s):Selçuk Öztürk and Y. Murat Elçin*
Affiliation:Ankara University Faculty of Science, Tissue Engineering, Biomaterials and Nanobiotechnology Laboratory, Ankara, Ankara University Faculty of Science, Tissue Engineering, Biomaterials and Nanobiotechnology Laboratory, Ankara
Keywords:Cardiac stem cells, regenerative medicine, cell therapy, patient characteristics, cardiovascular disease, myocardial infarction.
Abstract:For nearly a century, the adult heart was considered as a post-mitotic organ. The discovery of a resident
cardiac stem cell (CSC) population in the heart has dramatically undermined this notion with the support of
encouraging preclinical and clinical studies aiming to regenerate the damaged heart after a myocardial infarction
(MI). There are two ways to obtain CSCs for transplantation: Allogeneic and autologous sources. Autologous
cells may be obtained from the patients’ own tissue. Obtaining cells from diseased patients may contain a risk for
altered stem cell characteristics. In addition to MI, these patients may also suffer from pathological conditions
such as hypertension, diabetes mellitus, heart failure, congenital heart disease or cancer, which are known to alter
CSC characteristics. It is also known that physiological conditions such as aging and death affect CSC functions
in the heart. Our knowledge about the CSC characteristics in various physiological and pathological conditions
may shed light on our opinion about the regenerative capacity and biological activity of these cells in these situations.
Defining these properties may guide the researchers and clinicians in choosing and obtaining the most
qualified CSC populations for cardiac regenerative medicine therapies. The purpose of this review is to describe
the alterations in CSC characteristics in various physiological and pathological conditions.
