Duke Research: Creating Knowledge. Serving Society

Molding A New Heart

Stem cells from a mouse are being grown into muscle cells that beat and convey electrical signals, two key requirements for them to become a working patch of muscle for a damaged heart. Duke biomedical engineers, led by Nenad Bursac, grew the cells on a lattice made with the blood-clotting protein fibrin and bathed with helper cells called fibroblasts. "The cells grew as if they were in a developing heart," said graduate student Brian Liau. "Because the cells aligned themselves in the same direction, they were able to contract like native cells."