Electrical Stimulation Modulates the Fate Decision of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocyte Subtypes.

Abstract

The differentiation of human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) into specific subtypes, including ventricular, atrial, conduction, and nodal, remains a significant challenge for in vitro disease modeling and regenerative medicine. While chemical approaches have been explored for subtype specification, these protocols often result in heterogeneous CM populations. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that differential electrical stimulation (ES) can guide/modulate the differentiation of subtype-specific CMs from hiPSCs. By varying stimulation parameters, such as frequency and onset of ES at different developmental time points, we demonstrate that ES alone promotes the differentiation of hiPSC into either ventricular or atrial CMs, without changing any chemical cues. Our results show that lower frequency stimulation earlier in development promotes atrial gene expression, while higher frequency ES later in development promotes ventricular differentiation. These findings were validated by gene expression analysis, immunostaining, and measurement of calcium signaling. This study highlights the potential of ES as a tunable tool for directing CM subtype specification, offering a promising strategy for the generation of pure populations of CM subtypes for use in precision medicine, disease modeling, and regenerative therapies.