Heart, Heal Thyself?

So far, stem cells have not delivered the results scientists hoped for. But excitement is still rising

by Catherine Arnst

The dream of medical science is to train the body to repair itself in the face of disease or trauma, and the main focus of this dream is the heart. For five years, teams of doctors around the world have been trying to coax adult stem cells, the body's innate repair kit, to regenerate damaged heart tissue after a heart attack or other coronary disease.

These efforts have generated excitement among heart specialists, despite the fact that clinical trial results have been uneven and no one is quite sure how, why, or even if, stem cell therapy works. The excitement continues to mount, despite a study released on Mar. 1 stating that one of the most widely examined methods for delivering stem cells to the heart had failed.

BONE MARROW.

A team of German doctors from Technische Universitat in Munich reported on a rigorously conducted trial in the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA). Scientists injected G-CSF, a human growth factor known to stimulate adult stem cells, within 12 hours after a heart attack.

There were 114 patients in the study, more participants than the three earlier G-CSF trials combined. Half received the treatment, and the other half were given a placebo. After six months of follow-up, the researchers discovered that G-CSF did prod a significant number of stem cells to move from the bone marrow, where they are produced, to the heart, with no serious side effects.

Nonetheless, there was no improvement in heart function, throwing doubt on the whole stem cell approach. "The answer is fairly unequivocal," says Dr. Kenneth Chien, director of the cardiovascular research center at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. "The stem cells did not improve function."

DIRECT DELIVERY.

Unequivocal or not, the failure of the German trial has not dampened enthusiasm for heart regeneration. Several reports on stem cell research will be highlighted at the American College of Cardiology meeting in Atlanta on Mar. 11-14, and teams of doctors and biotech companies around the world are continuing their research in this area.

Most are quick to point out that their methods are fundamentally different from the German approach. If anything, the failure of G-CSF turned more attention on the many efforts to deliver stem cells directly to the heart, rather than indirectly trying to stimulate them with a growth factor.

There have been no human studies of the direct approach on the scale of the German trial, and the many smaller studies have often been contradictory. But even Chien, who considers himself a conservative when it comes to stem cell therapy, says it is one of the more exciting areas of heart research. "I don't think it should be considered a slam dunk, but I do think it is promising long-term."

SHAPE SHIFTERS.

Stem cell researchers, many of whom also treat patients, are driven by a huge unmet need. Some 1.1 million Americans are struck by heart attacks each year, and 4.8 million suffer from congestive heart failure, in which the heart stops pumping effectively, with 400,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

Both these conditions are caused by the destruction of heart muscle cells, and there are few effective therapies that can counteract that damage. Unlike most other tissues in the body, the heart does not regenerate itself. When damage occurs, it merely grows scar tissue, which restricts pumping even further.

Stem cells seem like an obvious solution. In an embryo, stem cells, which are undefined, can turn into any tissue in the body.

Because of restrictions and ethical concerns about the use of embryonic stem cells, however, most heart experiments involve adult stem cells extracted from the bone marrow. The pioneers in this area are Drs. James T. Willerson and Emerson C. Perin of the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke's Hospital in Houston.

ALMOST DOUBLE.

In 2000, Willerson and Perin treated 14 Brazilian patients with stem cells removed from their hip bones and directly injected with a catheter to their damaged hearts.