By using a new identifying protein, British researchers have discovered a particular type of stem cell that could help repair the damage caused by a heart attack when injected in mice, according to a report recently released by the Imperial College London (ICL).
In the last decade, stem cells isolated from the heart have demonstrated potential for encouraging the heart to repair itself, an approach called regenerative medicine. But there has been uncertainty among researchers about the best type and combination of stem cells.
In a study published in Nature Communications, a team from ICL and British Heart Foundation found that stem cells with heart repairing properties carry an identifying protein on their surface, called PDGFR alpha.
They were able to use this protein to find a particular type of stem cell that could have the most potential yet for heart regenerative medicine.
Researchers said mice treated with these stem cells were able to recover and repair a significant proportion of their damaged heart muscle after 12 weeks, preventing heart failure.
The researchers now hope to find a similar cell in human hearts, using PDGFR alpha and other proteins to identify and purify the best stem cells to repair the damage caused by heart attacks.
"Future treatments could be injections of stem cells, as in our current experiments, or use of the healing proteins that these cells make," said British Heart Foundation Professor Michael Schneider, who co-led the study.
