1
|
Feaster TK, Ewoldt JK, Avila A, Casciola M, Narkar A, Chen CS, Blinova K. Nonclinical evaluation of chronic cardiac contractility modulation on 3D human engineered cardiac tissues. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol 2024; 35:895-905. [PMID: 38433304 DOI: 10.1111/jce.16222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2023] [Revised: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Cardiac contractility modulation (CCM) is a medical device-based therapy delivering non-excitatory electrical stimulations to the heart to enhance cardiac function in heart failure (HF) patients. The lack of human in vitro tools to assess CCM hinders our understanding of CCM mechanisms of action. Here, we introduce a novel chronic (i.e., 2-day) in vitro CCM assay to evaluate the effects of CCM in a human 3D microphysiological system consisting of engineered cardiac tissues (ECTs). METHODS Cryopreserved human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes were used to generate 3D ECTs. The ECTs were cultured, incorporating human primary ventricular cardiac fibroblasts and a fibrin-based gel. Electrical stimulation was applied using two separate pulse generators for the CCM group and control group. Contractile properties and intracellular calcium were measured, and a cardiac gene quantitative PCR screen was conducted. RESULTS Chronic CCM increased contraction amplitude and duration, enhanced intracellular calcium transient amplitude, and altered gene expression related to HF (i.e., natriuretic peptide B, NPPB) and excitation-contraction coupling (i.e., sodium-calcium exchanger, SLC8). CONCLUSION These data represent the first study of chronic CCM in a 3D ECT model, providing a nonclinical tool to assess the effects of cardiac electrophysiology medical device signals complementing in vivo animal studies. The methodology established a standardized 3D ECT-based in vitro testbed for chronic CCM, allowing evaluation of physiological and molecular effects on human cardiac tissues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tromondae K Feaster
- Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Jourdan K Ewoldt
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Anna Avila
- Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Maura Casciola
- Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Akshay Narkar
- Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| | - Christopher S Chen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering, Harvard University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Ksenia Blinova
- Office of Science and Engineering Laboratories, Center for Devices and Radiological Health, US Food and Drug Administration, Silver Spring, Maryland, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Yang Y, Yang H, Kiskin FN, Zhang JZ. The new era of cardiovascular research: revolutionizing cardiovascular research with 3D models in a dish. Med Rev (2021) 2024; 4:68-85. [PMID: 38515776 PMCID: PMC10954298 DOI: 10.1515/mr-2023-0059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/23/2024]
Abstract
Cardiovascular research has heavily relied on studies using patient samples and animal models. However, patient studies often miss the data from the crucial early stage of cardiovascular diseases, as obtaining primary tissues at this stage is impracticable. Transgenic animal models can offer some insights into disease mechanisms, although they usually do not fully recapitulate the phenotype of cardiovascular diseases and their progression. In recent years, a promising breakthrough has emerged in the form of in vitro three-dimensional (3D) cardiovascular models utilizing human pluripotent stem cells. These innovative models recreate the intricate 3D structure of the human heart and vessels within a controlled environment. This advancement is pivotal as it addresses the existing gaps in cardiovascular research, allowing scientists to study different stages of cardiovascular diseases and specific drug responses using human-origin models. In this review, we first outline various approaches employed to generate these models. We then comprehensively discuss their applications in studying cardiovascular diseases by providing insights into molecular and cellular changes associated with cardiovascular conditions. Moreover, we highlight the potential of these 3D models serving as a platform for drug testing to assess drug efficacy and safety. Despite their immense potential, challenges persist, particularly in maintaining the complex structure of 3D heart and vessel models and ensuring their function is comparable to real organs. However, overcoming these challenges could revolutionize cardiovascular research. It has the potential to offer comprehensive mechanistic insights into human-specific disease processes, ultimately expediting the development of personalized therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yuan Yang
- Institute of Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Hao Yang
- Institute of Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Fedir N. Kiskin
- Institute of Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China
| | - Joe Z. Zhang
- Institute of Neurological and Psychiatric Disorders, Shenzhen Bay Laboratory, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, China
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Arslan U, Orlova VV, Mummery CL. Perspectives for Future Use of Cardiac Microtissues from Human Pluripotent Stem Cells. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2022; 8:4605-4609. [PMID: 35315663 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.1c01296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Cardiovascular disorders remain a critical health issue worldwide. While animals have been used extensively as experimental models to investigate heart disease mechanisms and develop drugs, their inherent drawbacks have shifted focus to more human-relevant alternatives. Human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells (hESCs and hiPSCs, collectively called hPSCs) have been identified as a source of different cardiac cells, but to date, they have rarely offered functional and structural maturity of the adult human heart. However, the combination of patient derived hPSCs with microphysiological tissue engineering approaches has presented new opportunities to study heart development and disease and identify drug targets. These models often closely mimic specific aspects of the native heart tissue including intercellular crosstalk and microenvironmental cues such that maturation occurs and relevant disease phenotypes are revealed. Most recently, organ-on-chip technology based on microfluidic devices has been combined with stem cell derived organoids and microtissues to create vascularized structures that can be subjected to fluidic flow and to which immune cells can be added to mimic inflammation of tissue postinjury. Similarly, the integration of nerve cells in these models can provide insight into how the cardiac nervous system affects heart pathology, for example, after myocardial infarction. Here, we consider these models and approaches in the context of cardiovascular disease together with their applications and readouts. We reflect on perspectives for their future implementation in understanding disease mechanisms and the drug discovery pipeline.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ulgu Arslan
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Einthovenweg 20, 2333ZC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Valeria V Orlova
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Einthovenweg 20, 2333ZC Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Christine L Mummery
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Einthovenweg 20, 2333ZC Leiden, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Bowen TJ, Hall AR, Lloyd GR, Weber RJM, Wilson A, Pointon A, Viant MR. An Extensive Metabolomics Workflow to Discover Cardiotoxin-Induced Molecular Perturbations in Microtissues. Metabolites 2021; 11:644. [PMID: 34564460 PMCID: PMC8470535 DOI: 10.3390/metabo11090644] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 09/13/2021] [Accepted: 09/15/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Discovering modes of action and predictive biomarkers of drug-induced structural cardiotoxicity offers the potential to improve cardiac safety assessment of lead compounds and enhance preclinical to clinical translation during drug development. Cardiac microtissues are a promising, physiologically relevant, in vitro model, each composed of ca. 500 cells. While untargeted metabolomics is capable of generating hypotheses on toxicological modes of action and discovering metabolic biomarkers, applying this technology to low-biomass microtissues in suspension is experimentally challenging. Thus, we first evaluated a filtration-based approach for harvesting microtissues and assessed the sensitivity and reproducibility of nanoelectrospray direct infusion mass spectrometry (nESI-DIMS) measurements of intracellular extracts, revealing samples consisting of 28 pooled microtissues, harvested by filtration, are suitable for profiling the intracellular metabolome and lipidome. Subsequently, an extensive workflow combining nESI-DIMS untargeted metabolomics and lipidomics of intracellular extracts with ultra-high performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (UHPLC-MS/MS) analysis of spent culture medium, to profile the metabolic footprint and quantify drug exposure concentrations, was implemented. Using the synthetic drug and model cardiotoxin sunitinib, time-resolved metabolic and lipid perturbations in cardiac microtissues were investigated, providing valuable data for generating hypotheses on toxicological modes of action and identifying putative biomarkers such as disruption of purine metabolism and perturbation of polyunsaturated fatty acid levels.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tara J. Bowen
- School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; (T.J.B.); (R.J.M.W.)
| | - Andrew R. Hall
- Functional and Mechanistic Safety, Clinical Pharmacology and Safety Sciences, R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, UK; (A.R.H.); (A.P.)
| | - Gavin R. Lloyd
- Phenome Centre Birmingham, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK;
| | - Ralf J. M. Weber
- School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; (T.J.B.); (R.J.M.W.)
- Phenome Centre Birmingham, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK;
| | - Amanda Wilson
- Clinical Pharmacology and Quantitative Pharmacology, Clinical Pharmacology and Safety Sciences, BioPharmaceuticals R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, UK;
| | - Amy Pointon
- Functional and Mechanistic Safety, Clinical Pharmacology and Safety Sciences, R&D, AstraZeneca, Cambridge CB4 0WG, UK; (A.R.H.); (A.P.)
| | - Mark R. Viant
- School of Biosciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK; (T.J.B.); (R.J.M.W.)
- Phenome Centre Birmingham, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B15 2TT, UK;
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Błyszczuk P, Zuppinger C, Costa A, Nurzynska D, Di Meglio F, Stellato M, Agarkova I, Smith GL, Distler O, Kania G. Activated Cardiac Fibroblasts Control Contraction of Human Fibrotic Cardiac Microtissues by a β-Adrenoreceptor-Dependent Mechanism. Cells 2020; 9:cells9051270. [PMID: 32443848 PMCID: PMC7290967 DOI: 10.3390/cells9051270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2020] [Revised: 05/10/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Cardiac fibrosis represents a serious clinical problem. Development of novel treatment strategies is currently restricted by the lack of the relevant experimental models in a human genetic context. In this study, we fabricated self-aggregating, scaffold-free, 3D cardiac microtissues using human inducible pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes and human cardiac fibroblasts. Fibrotic condition was obtained by treatment of cardiac microtissues with profibrotic cytokine transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1), preactivation of foetal cardiac fibroblasts with TGF-β1, or by the use of cardiac fibroblasts obtained from heart failure patients. In our model, TGF-β1 effectively induced profibrotic changes in cardiac fibroblasts and in cardiac microtissues. Fibrotic phenotype of cardiac microtissues was inhibited by treatment with TGF-β-receptor type 1 inhibitor SD208 in a dose-dependent manner. We observed that fibrotic cardiac microtissues substantially increased the spontaneous beating rate by shortening the relaxation phase and showed a lower contraction amplitude. Instead, no changes in action potential profile were detected. Furthermore, we demonstrated that contraction of human cardiac microtissues could be modulated by direct electrical stimulation or treatment with the β-adrenergic receptor agonist isoproterenol. However, in the absence of exogenous agonists, the β-adrenoreceptor blocker nadolol decreased beating rate of fibrotic cardiac microtissues by prolonging relaxation time. Thus, our data suggest that in fibrosis, activated cardiac fibroblasts could promote cardiac contraction rate by a direct stimulation of β-adrenoreceptor signalling. In conclusion, a model of fibrotic cardiac microtissues can be used as a high-throughput model for drug testing and to study cellular and molecular mechanisms of cardiac fibrosis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Przemysław Błyszczuk
- Center of Experimental Rheumatology, Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital Zurich, Wagistr. 14, 8952 Schlieren, Switzerland; (M.S.); (O.D.)
- Department of Clinical Immunology, Jagiellonian University Medical College, 30-663 Cracow, Poland
- Correspondence: (P.B.); (G.K.)
| | - Christian Zuppinger
- Department for BioMedical Research, Department of Cardiology, University Hospital Bern, 3008 Bern, Switzerland;
| | - Ana Costa
- Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8TA, UK; (A.C.); (G.S.)
| | - Daria Nurzynska
- Department of Public Health, University of Naples “Federico II”, 80131 Naples, Italy; (D.N.); (F.D.M.)
| | - Franca Di Meglio
- Department of Public Health, University of Naples “Federico II”, 80131 Naples, Italy; (D.N.); (F.D.M.)
| | - Mara Stellato
- Center of Experimental Rheumatology, Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital Zurich, Wagistr. 14, 8952 Schlieren, Switzerland; (M.S.); (O.D.)
| | | | - Godfrey L. Smith
- Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow G12 8TA, UK; (A.C.); (G.S.)
| | - Oliver Distler
- Center of Experimental Rheumatology, Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital Zurich, Wagistr. 14, 8952 Schlieren, Switzerland; (M.S.); (O.D.)
| | - Gabriela Kania
- Center of Experimental Rheumatology, Department of Rheumatology, University Hospital Zurich, Wagistr. 14, 8952 Schlieren, Switzerland; (M.S.); (O.D.)
- Correspondence: (P.B.); (G.K.)
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Turaga D, Matthys OB, Hookway TA, Joy DA, Calvert M, McDevitt TC. Single-Cell Determination of Cardiac Microtissue Structure and Function Using Light Sheet Microscopy. Tissue Eng Part C Methods 2020; 26:207-215. [PMID: 32111148 DOI: 10.1089/ten.tec.2020.0020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Native cardiac tissue is composed of heterogeneous cell populations that work cooperatively for proper tissue function; thus, engineered tissue models have moved toward incorporating multiple cardiac cell types in an effort to recapitulate native multicellular composition and organization. Cardiac tissue models composed of stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs) require inclusion of non-myocytes to promote stable tissue formation, yet the specific contributions of the supporting non-myocyte population on the parenchymal CMs and cardiac microtissues have to be fully dissected. This gap can be partly attributed to limitations in technologies able to accurately study the individual cellular structure and function that comprise intact three-dimensional (3D) tissues. The ability to interrogate the cell-cell interactions in 3D tissue constructs has been restricted by conventional optical imaging techniques that fail to adequately penetrate multicellular microtissues with sufficient spatial resolution. Light sheet fluorescence microscopy (LSFM) overcomes these constraints to enable single-cell resolution structural and functional imaging of intact cardiac microtissues. Multicellular spatial distribution analysis of heterotypic cardiac cell populations revealed that CMs and cardiac fibroblasts were randomly distributed throughout 3D microtissues. Furthermore, calcium imaging of live cardiac microtissues enabled single-cell detection of CM calcium activity, which showed that functional heterogeneity correlated with spatial location within the tissues. This study demonstrates that LSFM can be utilized to determine single-cell spatial and functional interactions of multiple cell types within intact 3D engineered microtissues, thereby facilitating the determination of structure-function relationships at both tissue-level and single-cell resolution. Impact statement The ability to achieve single-cell resolution by advanced three-dimensional light imaging techniques enables exquisite new investigation of multicellular analyses in native and engineered tissues. In this study, light sheet fluorescence microscopy was used to define structure-function relationships of distinct cell types in engineered cardiac microtissues by determining heterotypic cell distributions and interactions throughout the tissues as well as by assessing regional differences in calcium handing functional properties at the individual cardiomyocyte level.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Oriane B Matthys
- Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, California
- UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, San Francisco, California
| | | | - David A Joy
- Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, California
- UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, San Francisco, California
| | | | - Todd C McDevitt
- Gladstone Institutes, San Francisco, California
- Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Hookway TA, Matthys OB, Mendoza-Camacho FN, Rains S, Sepulveda JE, Joy DA, McDevitt TC. Phenotypic Variation Between Stromal Cells Differentially Impacts Engineered Cardiac Tissue Function. Tissue Eng Part A 2019; 25:773-785. [PMID: 30968748 DOI: 10.1089/ten.tea.2018.0362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
IMPACT STATEMENT Understanding the relationship between parenchymal and supporting cell populations is paramount to recapitulate the multicellular complexity of native tissues. Incorporation of stromal cells is widely recognized to be necessary for the stable formation of stem cell-derived cardiac tissues; yet, the types of stromal cells used have varied widely. This study systematically characterized several stromal populations and found that stromal phenotype and morphology was highly variable depending on cell source and exerted differential impacts on cardiac tissue function and induced pluripotent stem cell-cardiomyocyte phenotype. Therefore, the choice of supporting stromal population can differentially impact the phenotypic or functional performance of engineered cardiac tissues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tracy A Hookway
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California
| | - Oriane B Matthys
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California.,2 UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, San Francisco, California
| | | | - Sarah Rains
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California.,3 Department of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson, Texas
| | - Jessica E Sepulveda
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California.,4 Biological Sciences Department, Humboldt State University, Arcata, California
| | - David A Joy
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California.,2 UC Berkeley-UCSF Graduate Program in Bioengineering, San Francisco, California
| | - Todd C McDevitt
- 1 Gladstone Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, San Francisco, California.,5 Department of Bioengineering and Therapeutic Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, California
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Giacomelli E, Bellin M, Orlova VV, Mummery CL. Co-Differentiation of Human Pluripotent Stem Cells-Derived Cardiomyocytes and Endothelial Cells from Cardiac Mesoderm Provides a Three-Dimensional Model of Cardiac Microtissue. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 95:21.9.1-21.9.22. [PMID: 29044469 DOI: 10.1002/cphg.46] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The formation of cardiac mesodermal subtypes is highly regulated in time and space during heart development. In vitro models based on human pluripotent stem cells (hPS cells) provide opportunities to study mechanisms underlying fate choices governing lineage specification from common cardiovascular progenitors in human embryos. The generation of cardiac endothelial cells in particular allows the creation of complex models of cardiovascular disorders in which either cardiomyocytes or endothelial cells are affected. Here, a protocol for co-differentiation of cardiomyocytes and endothelial cells from cardiac mesoderm using hPS cells is described. Precise details for the enrichment of each cell population from heterogeneous-differentiated cultures, a description of how to maintain and dissociate enriched cardiomyocytes, and the expansion and cryopreservation of enriched endothelial cells are all provided. The generation and culture of three-dimensional cardiac microtissues from these cell populations is described and guidelines for the characterization of microtissues by immunofluorescent staining and re-plating for downstream applications are provided. © 2017 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elisa Giacomelli
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Milena Bellin
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Valeria V Orlova
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
| | - Christine L Mummery
- Department of Anatomy and Embryology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Department of Applied Stem Cell Technologies, University of Twente, Enschede, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|