Editorial Focus Cellular preservation therapy in acute myocardial infarction

THE PAST DECADE has been characterized by unprecedented progress in cardiac cell biology and pathophysiology. The dogma of the heart being a terminally differentiated organ has been challenged by compelling evidence generated in several different laboratories around the world (6). These findings were received with a mixture of skepticism and enthusiasm, which has led to an exponential development in the field of cardiac regeneration. The relative ease of using autologous cells to promote cardiac regeneration paired with promising preclinical data has prompted multiple transla-tional studies in patients with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) (5, 12). While the results of clinical studies with bone marrow-derived stem cells or mobilizing factors [such as granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF)] produced only marginal positive benefits (5, 12), clinical observation