Regeneration-associated cells improve recovery from myocardial infarction through enhanced vasculogenesis, anti-inflammation, and cardiomyogenesis.

Abstract

BackgroundConsidering the impaired function of regenerative cells in myocardial infarction (MI) patients with comorbidities and associated risk factors, cell therapy to enhance the regenerative microenvironment was designed using regeneration-associated cells (RACs), including endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) and anti-inflammatory cells.MethodsRACs were prepared by quality and quantity control culture of blood mononuclear cells (QQMNCs). Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMNCs) were isolated from Lewis rats and conditioned for 5 days using a medium containing stem cell factors, thrombopoietin, Flt-3 ligand, vascular endothelial growth factor, and interleukin-6 to generate QQMNCs.ResultsA 5.3-fold increase in the definitive colony-forming EPCs and vasculogenic EPCs was observed, in comparison to naïve PBMNCs. QQMNCs were enriched with EPCs (28.9-fold, PConclusionQQMNCs conferred potent angiogenic and anti-inflammatory properties to the regenerative microenvironment, enhancing myocardiogenesis and functional recovery of rat MI hearts.