This record provides bibliographic details and links to the original research. An editorial study breakdown is not available.
What the researchers found
Co-treatment with Tb4 microspheres and hiPSC-CMs significantly enhanced cell engraftment, vasculogenesis, cardiomyocyte proliferation, left ventricular function, and reduced infarct size in pigs after MI, with no arrhythmia or tumorigenesis.
Why it matters
Heart attacks damage heart muscle irreversibly. Stem cell therapy has been disappointing due to poor cell survival. Tb4 could be the missing ingredient that makes cardiac stem cell therapy actually work.
The numbers in context
1.2×10⁸ hiPSC-CMs; 600 ng/mL Tb4; 2-week sustained release; improved LV function; reduced infarct size; enhanced engraftment and vasculogenesis; no arrhythmias; no tumors; AKT and BcL-XL upregulated
How the study worked
Randomized pig study. MI induced, then 4 groups: basal medium, Tb4 microspheres, hiPSC-CMs (1.2×10⁸), or both. Tb4 delivered via gelatin microspheres (sustained release ~2 weeks). Assessed by cardiac MRI, implanted loop recorders, and whole-body MRI for tumors.
Who was studied
Pigs with induced myocardial infarction randomized to 4 groups: MI control, Tb4 microspheres, hiPSC-CMs, or Tb4+hiPSC-CMs
What this study cannot tell us
Pig model, not humans. Relatively short follow-up. Immunosuppression was required for human-derived cells. The 1.2×10⁸ cell dose may not be directly translatable. Manufacturing complexity of both Tb4 microspheres and hiPSC-CMs is significant.
Read the original research
Thymosin β4 increases cardiac cell proliferation, cell engraftment, and the reparative potency of human induced-pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes in a porcine model of acute myocardial infarction.
Theranostics, 11(16), 7879-7895
Citation
Tan, Shi Hua; Loo, Sze Jie; Gao, Yu; Tao, Zhong Hao; Su, Li Ping; Wang, Chen Xu; Zhang, Sophia L; Mu, Yong Hui; Cui, Ying Hua; Abdurrachim, Desiree; Wang, Wei Hsin; Lalic, Janise; Lim, Kheng Choon; Bu, Jun; Tan, Ru San; Lee, Teck Hock; Zhang, Jianyi; Ye, Lei. (2021). Thymosin β4 increases cardiac cell proliferation, cell engraftment, and the reparative potency of human induced-pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes in a porcine model of acute myocardial infarction.. Theranostics, 11(16), 7879-7895. https://doi.org/10.7150/thno.56757