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Progenitor Cell Homing in the Postischemic Myocardium: Just an Unmotivated Pitstop in the Microcirculation?
Author(s) -
Tuche Fabio,
Menger Michael D.,
Körbel Christina,
Nickels Ruth M.,
Bouskela Eliete,
Schramm René
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
microcirculation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.793
H-Index - 83
eISSN - 1549-8719
pISSN - 1073-9688
DOI - 10.1111/j.1549-8719.2012.00212.x
Subject(s) - homing (biology) , microcirculation , cardiology , medicine , transplantation , in vivo , progenitor cell , heart transplantation , stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , ecology
Objective We developed a model for direct assessment of BMC sequestration in the postischemic murine myocardium after direct antegrade intracoronary injection. Methods Modified syngeneic heterotopic heart transplantation was used as a basic model for global myocardial I/R injury in a total of n = 29 animals. IVM was employed to analyze the right ventricular subepicardial coronary microcirculation and for tracking fluorescently labeled BMCs . Results IVM allowed monitoring all segments of the coronary microcirculation including feeding arterioles, nutritive capillaries, and postcapillary venules. WI and generalized atherosclerosis induced profound reperfusion failure, particularly in nutritive myocardial capillaries. BMCs were found to exclusively sequester in myocardial capillaries, but not in coronary arterioles or postcapillary venules. The sequestration of BMCs in coronary capillaries occurred independent of WI, generalized atherosclerosis, or adhesion molecule function. Conclusions This is the first study allowing direct assessment of BMC homing to the postischemic myocardium. Heterotopic heart transplantation and IVM are proper means to study the myocardial sequestration of BMCs after direct antegrade intracoronary injection in vivo . We show for the first time that intracoronarily injected BMCs sequester exclusively in nutritive myocardial capillaries.