Enhancing Cardiomyogenesis In Stem Cells With the Use of Small Molecules

Abstract

Cardiovascular diseases contribute a large amount of morbidity and mortality in developing and developed countries all around the world. In conditions such as the myocardial infarction, a significant amount of cardiomyocytes die leading to an impaired function of the heart. One promising method for replacing these cardiomyocytes would be with the use of cardiomyocytes derived from embryonic stem cells. However, a large number of cardiomyocytes and a highly efficient method for obtaining cardiomyocytes are needed. Using the principles of small molecule treatment to induce differentiation in a serum-free based differentiation protocol, I have demonstrated that the induction of canonical Wnt signalling via CHIR 99021, and subsequent addition of bone morphogenetic protein 4 was best able to induce cardiomyogenesis in mouse embryonic stem cells. While improvements in efficiency are still required, the manipulation of the Wnt and BMP4 signalling pathways hold great promise in improving cardiomyogenesis in mESCs.