Hidetoshi Masumoto

To realize cardiac regeneration using human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), strategies for cell preparation, tissue engineering and transplantation must be explored. Here we report a new protocol for the simultaneous induction of cardiomyocytes (CMs) and vascular cells [endothelial cells (ECs)/vascular mural cells (MCs)], and generate entirely hiPSC-engineered cardiovascular cell sheets, which showed advantageous therapeutic effects in infarcted hearts. The protocol adds to a previous d

Although stem cell therapy is a promising strategy for cardiac restoration, the heterogeneity of transplanted cells has been hampering the precise understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms. Previously, we established a cardiovascular cell differentiation system from mouse pluripotent stem cells, in which cardiomyocytes (CMs), endothelial cells (ECs), and mural cells (MCs) can be systematically induced and purified. Combining this with cell sheet technology, we generated cardiac tiss

Human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are a robust source for cardiac regenerative therapy due to their potential to support autologous and allogeneic transplant paradigms. The in vitro generation of three-dimensional myocardial tissue constructs using biomaterials as an implantable hiPSC-derived myocardium provides a path to realize sustainable myocardial regeneration. We generated engineered cardiac tissues (ECTs) from three cellular compositions of cardiomyocytes (CMs), endothelial ce

Autologous vascular grafts are widely used in revascularization surgeries for small caliber targets. However, the availability of autologous conduits might be limited due to prior surgeries or the quality of vessels. Xenogeneic decellularized vascular grafts from animals can potentially be a substitute of autologous vascular grafts. Decellularization with high hydrostatic pressure (HHP) is reported to highly preserve extracellular matrix (ECM), creating feasible conditions for recellularization

Patients with chronic cardiomyopathy may have persistent viral infections in their hearts, particularly with SARS-CoV-2, which targets the ACE2 receptor highly expressed in human hearts. This raises concerns about a potential global heart failure pandemic stemming from COVID-19, an SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in near future. Although faced with this healthcare caveat, there is limited research on persistent viral heart infections, and no models have been established. In this study, we created an SARS-Co

Stem cell therapy is a promising therapeutic option for severe cardiac diseases that are resistant to conventional therapies. To overcome the unsatisfactory results of most clinical researches on stem cell injections to an injured heart, we are developing bioengineered cardiac tissue grafts using pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes and vascular cells. We have validated the functional benefits of mouse embryonic stem cell-derived and human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiac ti

Stem cell-based cardiac regenerative therapy is expected to be a promising strategy for the treatment of severe heart diseases. Pluripotent stem cells enabled us to reconstruct regenerated myocardium in injured hearts as an engineered tissue aiming for cardiac regeneration. To establish a long-term survival of transplanted three-dimensional (3D) engineered heart tissues in vivo, it is indispensable to induce microcapillaries into the engineered tissues after transplantation. Using temperature-re

QIH partly ameliorated acute kidney injury in a mouse ischemia model even in normothermia. QIH might be a promising approach to achieving sufficient kidney protection without hypothermic circulatory arrest in the future.

A 39-year-old woman had undergone mitral valve replacement (MVR) (29-mm Björk-Shiley Delrin disk) at 6 years of age. Severe mitral regurgitation, aortic regurgitation, and left ventricular dilatation were detected by echocardiography in October 2006, and MVR (ON-X 25 mm) and aortic valve replacements (St. Jude Medical Regent, 21 mm) were performed in December. The Delrin disk of the previous prosthetic valve, located at the position of the mitral valve, was markedly abraded, broadening the clear

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are expected to be a promising cell source in regenerative medicine and drug discovery for the treatment of various intractable diseases. An approach for creating a 3-dimensional (3D) structure from hPSCs that mimics human cardiac tissue functions has made it theoretically possible to conduct drug discovery and cardiotoxicity tests by assessing pharmacological responses in human cardiac tissues by a screening system using a compound library. The myocardium fu

Cardiac regenerative medicine is emerging as a new approach to treat severe cardiovascular diseases that are resistant to conventional therapies. To achieve fair engraftment and efficient outcome, the method of cell transplantation is important, as the efficacy of engraftment after simple needle injection is relatively poor. Using biomaterials (e.g. collagen, fibrin, gelatin or matrigel) as a scaffold of the transplanted cells is an effective method, and various attempts to control cell distribu