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Human embryonic stem (hES) cells are derived from the inner mass cells of developing blastocytes and have the ability to generate cells from three embryonic germ layers. Since their initial culturing in 1981, ES cells have revolutionized the mouse genetics field1,2 by allowing the creation of mouse models of disease as well as the molecular study of the differentiation of pluripotent cells into various somatic cell types including cardiomyocytes and vascular smooth cells.3–5 Some key features of ES cells that have made them particularly useful in research include their ability for self-renewal, diploid karyotype stability, and continuous telomerase activity.6–9 Since human fetuses are not generally available for scientific study, hES cells represent an in vitro model for embryonic differentiation, with the ability to understand more about cell lineage commitment and the process of differentiation. Importantly, they also represent a potential source of cells for therapeutic uses such as the regeneration of functional myocardium and conducting tissue. As a consequence of these capabilities and their derivation from human embryos, hES cells have been a subject of numerous ethical and moral debates.10In this issue of Circulation Research , He and coworkers characterize the electrophysiological and contractile properties of cardiomyocytes derived from hES cells.11 This work, together with previous studies by Gepstein’s group8,12 and other recent reports,13,14 expands our understanding of cardiac differentiation of hES cells, building a foundation for future research and for new therapeutic strategies using hES cells. In agreement with other hES studies,8 He et al found that about 20% of the embryoid bodies (EBs) (three-dimensional cell aggregates of hES cells in culture) remained as spontaneous beating “cardiac-like” cell clusters after 45 days in culture. The number of cardiomyocytes within these EB outgrowths varied …

Electrophysiological Profiling of Cardiomyocytes in Embryonic Bodies Derived From Human Embryonic Stem Cells