Year 1

Disease Team Award DR1-01461, Autologous cardiac-derived cells for advanced ischemic cardiomyopathy, is targeted at developing novel therapies for the treatment of heart failure, a condition which afflicts 7 million Americans. Heart failure, when symptomatic, has a mortality exceeding that of many malignant tumors; new therapies are desperately needed. In the first year of CIRM support, we have developed and validated a development candidate, cardiospheres, which are three-dimensional (3D) functional microtissues engineered in culture and suitable for implantation in the hearts of patients via minimally-invasive catheter-based methods. Cardiospheres, derived from heart biopsies using methods developed by the Principal Investigator, have now been successfuly delivered via magnetically-navigated injection catheters into healthy heart tissue surrounding zones of myocardial damage in preclinical models. The 3D microtissues engraft efficiently in preclinical models of heart failure, as expected from prior work indicating their complex multi-layer nature combining cardiac progenitors, supporting cells and derivatives into the cardiomyocyte and endothelial lineages. We have also developed standard operating procedures for cardiosphere manufacturing, and are in the process of developing release criteria for the 3D microtissue development candidate. Next steps include efficacy studies, with a view to an approved IND by mid-2012.