Therapeutic Hypothermia for Cardioprotection in Acute Myocardial Infarction.

Mild therapeutic hypothermia of 32-35°C improved neurologic outcomes in outside hospital cardiac arrest survivor. Furthermore, in experimental studies on infarcted model and pilot studies on conscious patients with acute myocardial infarction, therapeutic hypothermia successfully reduced infarct size and microvascular resistance. Therefore, mild therapeutic hypothermia has received an attention as a promising solution for reduction of infarction size after acute myocardial infarction which are not completely solved despite of optimal reperfusion therapy. Nevertheless, the results from randomized clinical trials failed to prove the cardioprotective effects of therapeutic hypothermia or showed beneficial effects only in limited subgroups. In this article, we reviewed rationale for therapeutic hypothermia and possible mechanisms from previous studies, effective methods for clinical application to the patients with acute myocardial infarction, lessons from current clinical trials and future directions.

The Role of Large Animal Studies in Cardiac Regenerative Therapy Concise Review of Translational Stem Cell Research

Animal models have long been developed for cardiovascular research. These animal models have been helpful in understanding disease, discovering potential therapeutics, and predicting efficacy. Despite many efforts, however, translational study has been underestimated. Recently, investigations have identified stem cell treatment as a potentially promising cell therapy for regenerative medicine, largely because of the stem cell's ability to differentiate into many functional cell types. Stem cells promise a new era of cell-based therapy for salvaging the heart. However, stem cells have the potential risk of tumor formation. These properties of stem cells are considered a major concern over the efficacy of cell therapy. The translational/preclinical study of stem cells is essential but only at the beginning stages. What types of heart disease are indicated for stem cell therapy, what type of stem cell, what type of animal model, how do we deliver stem cells, and how do we improve heart function? These may be the key issues that the settlement of which would facilitate the transition of stem cell research from bench to bedside. In this review article, we discuss state-of-the-art technology in stem cell therapies for cardiovascular diseases.