Minimally invasive exosome spray

Heart damage is a serious disease, and although modern surgical techniques, diagnostics, and medicines have greatly improved early survival rates from these events, the heart still has varying degrees of permanent tissue damage.

In the past, scientists have explored the use of stem cell therapy as a new means of tissue regeneration after a heart attack. However, injecting stem cells directly into the heart may have risks, such as triggering an immune response in the body.

To solve the above problems, researchers turned their attention to stem cell-derived exosomes. Exosomes are membrane sacs containing proteins, lipids, nucleic acids and other components secreted by stem cells. Previous studies have used mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes to treat rat models of ischemic heart disease, and the results showed that the effect of stem cell exosomes in repairing heart damage has been confirmed by many studies.

Scientists have thought that after injuries in daily life, they can use medicine spray to spray on the wound. They also imagine whether exosomes can be made into spray and sprayed on the damaged heart to achieve direct repair of the damaged area.

Dr. Yafeng Zhou and his colleagues at the Suzhou University Medical Center designed, manufactured and tested an exosome-derived extract ( EXOS ) that combined exosomes with fibrinogen. In an adjuvant micro-drive mouse model, EXOS improved injured heart function and reduced fibrosis, promoting dispersed endogenous myogenesis after injury. They further tested the feasibility and safety of EXOS in a pig model.

In recent years, stem cell exosomes have gradually attracted attention due to their low immunogenicity and non-tumorigenicity. The disease treatment effects they have demonstrated are no less than those of intact stem cells themselves. In the past, stem cells have been proven to have great potential in the repair of heart damage, but more and more evidence shows that stem cells exert their repair effects through the secretion of a variety of factors and molecules, including exosomes, growth factors, antioxidants, proteases, etc. In the future, with a deeper exploration of the mechanism of stem cell treatment of heart damage, it is expected that innovative therapies for heart damage repair will be realized and more patients will benefit.