Scientists Pioneer Synthetic Heart Models for Precision Medicine Advances

Researchers can now study human heart development and congenital heart disease on incredibly precise models thanks to developments in the creation of patentable synthetic human-like hearts, which were first developed at Michigan State. This is making it easier to create novel treatments and pharmaceutical medications to address a range of heart-related conditions in time for February’s American Heart Month. 

These miniature versions of human hearts are growing more intricate and lifelike, resembling fetal human hearts in terms of size and growth. The micro hearts were developed by an MSU research team, and they initially reported their findings in 2020. They have emerged as a global leader in this field very quickly, and their most recent discoveries have been detailed in Stem Cell Reports and Nature Communications. 

Finding practical models is crucial to finding efficient and clinically applicable treatments for cardiovascular disease, according to Aitor Aguirre, associate professor of biomedical engineering and head of the division of developmental and stem cell biology at MSU’s Institute for Quantitative Health Science and Engineering. An estimated 21 million fatalities per year are attributed to this illness, which also includes blood vessel and cardiac problems. And the quantity is rising.

“Although 90% of cardiovascular disease is thought to be preventable, it has become the leading cause of death in the developed world,” Aguirre stated. “We can generate and study human hearts because of developments in bioengineering and stem cell technologies. This will help us understand the mechanics of disease, which will transform medical methods to treating and preventing congenital disorders and heart ailments. 

We anticipate that fewer patients will require therapy in the future, and for those who do, the time it takes to create new medications will decrease,” he continued. The best course of action is prevention, especially in the case of congenital abnormalities. For this reason, the tiny cardiac organoids have the potential to fundamentally alter how we see healthcare.  

Aguirre gave an example of how pharmaceutical companies would remove a medicine from the market if it were discovered to cause cardiotoxicity. Anticipating toxicity beforehand could save costs and time, as well as lower the chance of medication failure. Adult pluripotent stem cells are used to create miniature cardiac organoids. Their physiological significance and intricate cellular makeup allow for a hitherto unattainable level of study on human heart growth and dysfunction in a dish.  
 
“We created a model using these organoids to study the effects of maternal diabetes at every stage of development in the fetal heart,” Aguirre stated. This is how precision medicine is defined. Science can help us improve the precision of therapeutic practice.”  

Journal Reference  

1. Brett Volmert et al, A patterned human primitive heart organoid model generated by pluripotent stem cell self-organization, Nature Communications (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43999-1. 
2. Aleksandra Kostina et al, ER stress and lipid imbalance drive diabetic embryonic cardiomyopathy in an organoid model of human heart development, Stem Cell Reports (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2024.01.003.