Cardiac Progenitor Cells as Target of Cell and Growth Factor-Based Therapies for Myocardial Regeneration

It has been recently established that the adult heart harbors a reservoir of myocardial stem/progenitor cells. The regenerative potential of the heart is, however, insufficient to fully restore the functional myocardium after damage, motivating the use of cell- and growth factor-based replacement strategies. In this review, we summarize the progress that has been made in this field and discuss its actual contribution to the stimulation of endogenous mechanisms of myocardial repair/regeneration. Particular emphasis has been paid to paracrine secretion occurring in host tissues as the major mechanism involved in the beneficial outcomes of cell transplantation into the injured myocardium. The advantages of using cell therapy over single and combined growth factor administration have been also extensively discussed.