Cell Programming for Cardiovascular Disease Modeling and Therapy 2.0

Dear Colleagues,

Cardiovascular diseases still represent a leading cause of mortality in the developed countries with highly limited therapy options. A main reason is the very limited regeneration potential of collapsed cardiomyocytes – therefore novel approaches toward personalized regenerative therapy and drug development are of major importance. In recent years, forward programming of iPSCs as well as Direct Reprogramming of somatic cells and adult stem cells have introduced entirely novel options to circumvent obstacles commonly encountered in regenerative medicine by utilizing autologous cells as the source of treatment. This has greatly benefitted from efforts to identify and optimize master regulator combinations to redefine cellular fates. Multiple research groups have shown direct somatic cell conversion towards cardiovascular cells, thereby avoiding a pluripotent intermediate state. Moreover, in vitro test systems based on organoid cultures derived from patient specific programmed cardiovascular cells are being developed which will enable personalized drug testing in precision medicine. In this Special Issue, we are aiming to broadly adress topics from understanding the basic science of somatic and stem cell reprogramming to their applications in cardiovascular regeneration and disease treatment as well as in vitro disease modeling approaches.

The current Special Issue will accept original studies, reviews and technical reports in the field of cardiovascular cell programming, disease modeling and cell based therapy, written by scientists active in the field.

Prof. Dr. Robert David
Guest Editor

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