Researchers from the University of Barcelona and the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC), in collaboration with the Center of Regenerative Medicine of Barcelona (CMR[B]), have created a new platform, called CardioSlice, able to produce human cardiac tissue with pluripotent stem cells and tridimensional matrix. Results have been published in the journal Stem Cells Report.
Artificial tissues obtained by CardioSlice have special features: first, they are able to beat autonomously; second, they produce an electric signal similar to an electrocardiogram, and last, they respond to drugs in the same way a human heart does. To do so, the team of researchers has designed and built a bioreactor chain that enables stimulation, observation and in situ study of the electrophysiology of the resulting tissue, as well as the impact of external factors such as drugs with cardiotoxic effects. According to Elena Martínez, lecturer at the Department of Electronic and Biomedical Engineering and researcher at IBEC, "CardioSlice is like a mini-factory of tissues that can help us distinguish those drugs that can harm our heart".
