Bone Grafts Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Bone Grafts, including details on spine fusion, surgery, procedure, risks.

Aging and disease as modifiers of efficacy of cell therapy.

Dimmeler S, Leri A

Molecular Cardiology, Department of Internal Medicine III, University of Frankfurt, Theodor-Stern-Kai 7, 60590 Frankfurt, Germany. Dimmeler@em.uni-frankfurt.de

Cell therapy is a promising option for treating ischemic diseases and heart failure. Adult stem and progenitor cells from various sources have experimentally been shown to augment the functional recovery after ischemia, and clinical trials have confirmed that autologous cell therapy using bone marrow-derived or circulating blood-derived progenitor cells is safe and provides beneficial effects. However, aging and risk factors for coronary artery disease affect the functional activity of the endogenous stem/progenitor cell pools, thereby at least partially limiting the therapeutic potential of the applied cells. In addition, age and disease affect the tissue environment, in which the cells are infused or injected. The present review article will summarize current evidence for cell impairment during aging and disease but also discuss novel approaches how to reverse the dysfunction of cells or to refresh the target tissue. Pretreatment of cells or the target tissue by small molecules, polymers, growth factors, or a combination thereof may provide useful approaches for enhancement of cell therapy for cardiovascular diseases.

Published 6 June 2008 in Circ Res, 102(11): 1319-30.
Full-text of this article is available online (may require subscription).

© 2004-2008 Bone Grafts Research Today. All Rights Reserved.