AUTHOR=Bracco Gartner Tom C. L. , Deddens Janine C. , Mol Emma A. , Magin Ferrer Marina , van Laake Linda W. , Bouten Carlijn V. C. , Khademhosseini Ali , Doevendans Pieter A. , Suyker Willem J. L. , Sluijter Joost P. G. , Hjortnaes Jesper 

TITLE=Anti-fibrotic Effects of Cardiac Progenitor Cells in a 3D-Model of Human Cardiac Fibrosis

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2019

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/cardiovascular-medicine/articles/10.3389/fcvm.2019.00052

DOI=10.3389/fcvm.2019.00052

ISSN=2297-055X

ABSTRACT=<p>Cardiac fibroblasts play a key role in chronic heart failure. The conversion from cardiac fibroblast to myofibroblast as a result of cardiac injury, will lead to excessive matrix deposition and a perpetuation of pro-fibrotic signaling. Cardiac cell therapy for chronic heart failure may be able to target fibroblast behavior in a paracrine fashion. However, no reliable human fibrotic tissue model exists to evaluate this potential effect of cardiac cell therapy. Using a gelatin methacryloyl hydrogel and human fetal cardiac fibroblasts (hfCF), we created a 3D <italic>in vitro</italic> model of human cardiac fibrosis. This model was used to study the possibility to modulate cellular fibrotic responses. Our approach demonstrated paracrine inhibitory effects of cardiac progenitor cells (CPC) on both cardiac fibroblast activation and collagen synthesis <italic>in vitro</italic> and revealed that continuous cross-talk between hfCF and CPC seems to be indispensable for the observed anti-fibrotic effect.</p>