Enhanced Hypothermic Storage of Neonatal Cardiomyocytes

Successful hypothermic storage of primary cells is now recognized as a rate-limiting step in the development of clinical applications in regenerative medicine and in research-related settings. Heart transplantation and stem cell cardiomyoplasty require hypothermic storage for successful harvest/isolation and transport to the recipient. These processes are time constrained, thereby necessitating the need to recover fully functional bioproducts following prolonged hypothermia. Despite numerous attempts, extension of the cold storage interval for myocytes while maintaining viability and function has not been realized. In this study, investigation into several strategic approaches to hypothermic preservation was evaluated in the neonatal rat ventricular cardiomyocyte model (NRVCM). Samples were assessed for survival by a panel of indicators including cellular membrane integrity, metabolic activity and spontaneous contractile function. Cultured NRVCM were held at 4°C for 24–72 h in either standard culture medi...