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Biology subjects

Hausenloy, D.

Publications and source records attributed to Hausenloy, D..

3 recordsLinked to original sources

Device encapsulated MSCs for adaptive secretome therapy to effectively target ischaemic heart injury

Effective long-term strategies to protect the ischaemic heart remain a significant challenge. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) offer therapeutic potential primarily through their secretome, a bioactive factor-rich milieu with broad beneficial effects. However, existing delivery methods have not been shown to provide sustained benefits. Herein, we introduce an innovative approach for sustained MSC-secretome delivery for long-term cardioprotection. In a rat model of chronic myocardial infarction, Cymerus MSCs, derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), were encapsulated in a Procyon immunoisolation device and implanted subcutaneously. A human-iPSC-derived engineered cardiac microtissue model was used to simulate ischaemia-reperfusion injury and assess cardioprotective effects in a human context. The MSC-loaded Procyon device significantly improved cardiac function and reduced adverse left ventricular remodelling over a 12-week period. These positive effects were consistent across both young and middle-aged, male and female rats, indicating broad applicability. The encapsulated MSCs remained viable and continuously released therapeutic secretome for 12 weeks. In vitro, the MSC secretome protected human engineered cardiac microtissues from simulated ischaemia-reperfusion injury, restoring contractile function, improving cell viability, and reducing oxidative stress. Proteomic analysis of MSCs revealed 179 unique cellular proteins post-implantation, linked to adaptive immune and inflammatory responses as well as wound healing. MSC secretome profiling revealed increased protein diversity associated with tissue repair and immune regulation, suggesting MSCs undergo an adaptive response to ischaemic conditions, enhancing their therapeutic potential. This translational study highlights a clinically viable, minimally invasive method for sustained cardioprotection, harnessing the MSC secretome to address a pivotal gap in current treatments for ischaemic heart disease.

pathology↗

The novel conserved NAD+ binding micropeptide SGHRT regulates mitochondrial function and metabolism in human cardiomyocytes

AbstractsNicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is a critical metabolite and coenzyme for multiple metabolic pathways and cellular processes (1-4). In this study, we identified Singheart, SGHRT as a nuclear genome-encoded NAD+-binding mitochondrial micropeptide. SGHRT, present in both monomeric and dimeric forms, binds directly to NAD, but not NADH or flavin adenine dinucleotide (FAD). Localized to the inner mitochondrial membrane and mitochondrial matrix, SGHRT interacts with the mitochondrial enzymes Succinate-CoA Ligase and Succinate Dehydrogenase. SGHRT deletion in human embryonic stem cell derived cardiomyocytes disrupted mitochondria morphology, decreased total NAD and ATP abundance, and resulted in defective TCA cycle metabolism, the electron transport chain and in Ox-Phos processes. These results comprise the first report of an NAD+-binding micropeptide, SGHRT, required for mitochondrial function and metabolism.

cell biology↗

An Automated Workflow for Segmenting Single Adult Cardiac Cells from Large-Volume Serial Block-Face Scanning Electron Microscopy Data

This paper presents a new algorithm to automatically segment the myofibrils, mitochondria and nuclei within single adult cardiac cells that are part of a large serial-block-face scanning electron microscopy (SBF-SEM) dataset. The algorithm only requires a set of manually drawn contours that roughly demarcate the cell boundary at routine slice intervals (every 50th, for example). The algorithm correctly classified pixels within the single cell with 97% accuracy when compared to manual segmentations. One entire cell and the partial volumes of two cells were segmented. Analysis of segmentations within these cells showed that myofibrils and mitochondria occupied 47.5% and 51.6% on average respectively, while the nuclei occupy 0.7% of the cell for which the entire volume was captured in the SBF-SEM dataset. Mitochondria clustering increased at the periphery of the nucleus region and branching points of the cardiac cell. The segmentations also showed high area fraction of mitochondria (up to 70% of the 2D image slice) in the sub-sarcolemmal region, whilst it was closer to 50% in the intermyofibrillar space. We finally demonstrate that our segmentations can be turned into 3D finite element meshes for cardiac cell computational physiology studies. We offer our large dataset and MATLAB implementation of the algorithm for research use at www.github.com/CellSMB/sbfsem-cardiac-cell-segmenter/. We anticipate that this timely tool will be of use to cardiac computational and experimental physiologists alike who study cardiac ultrastructure and its role in heart function.

bioengineering↗