Turkish scientists produce artificial heart muscle tissue

Turkish scientists have developed artificial heart muscle tissue to enhance innovative treatment approaches and further genetic heart diseases research. To create muscle tissue, blood cells taken from patients are altered into embryonic stem cells and reprogrammed.

Using the Nobel Prize-winning "reprogramming" method, researchers produce custom-made heart muscle tissue in vitro. The project will help researchers to develop more potential methods and medication for heart diseases. Under the supervision of Professor Volkan Tuzcu and Assistant Professor Esra Çağavi, the Turkish research team is supported by TÜBİTAK and Medipol University Regenerative Medicine Research Center (REMER). Çağavi said, "These artificial tissues provide us with unlimited resources and a platform to research more in vitro conditions."

Cell programming is a pioneering method that has made true the dream of finding replacement tissue for people crippled by disease. Shinya Yamanaka of Japan and John Gurdon of Britain won the Nobel Prize for work in cell programming back in 2012. Their findings have revolutionized the understanding of how cells and organisms develop. By reprogramming human cells, scientists have created new opportunities to study diseases and develop methods for diagnosis and therapy.