Focus / Turkish Scientists have Created Personalized Beating Heart Tissue in the Lab

At the leading regenerative medicine research center in Turkey, REMER, heart tissue was created from patient – derived pluripotent stem cells that was generated by inducing patients’ blood cells to become, first embryonic-like stem cells and then to heart cells. Scientists believe that this patient-derived heart tissue will shed light into the understanding and diagnosis of hereditary heart diseases and will facilitate development of new therapeutic approaches.

Nobel-Winning “Reprogramming” Technique Is Used to Induce

Mature Body Cells to Stem Cells Blood cells that were taken from the patients were re-programmed to become embryonic-like stem cells, by using a 2012 Nobel-winning methodology. Within REMER, it became possible to model the “disease in-a- dish” in the lab and create an unlimited cell source for generating individual heart cells or heart tissue specifically for the patient, as a personalized-therapy option.

A New Dawn for Heart Disease Researchers

Hereditary cardiac rhythm disorders are seen in 1 out of every 2000 person in Turkey and could lead to sudden death in these patients. Existing treatment options are available to minimise the symptoms and risk of lethal arythmia; however, cannot cure the disease. Through an important project supported by TUBITAK that is carried out by Assist. Prof. Esra Çağavi and clinically conducted by Prof Dr. Volkan Tuzcu, patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells have been generated from body cells and converted to heart tissue in order to create an infinite cardiac cell source for unraveling new mechanisms about heart disease and use this knowledge to develop novel drug-based or cell-based therapeutic approaches for heart diseases and even create an artificial heart in the future.