Abstract
The use of injected stem cells, leading to regeneration of ischemic heart tissue, for example, following coronary artery occlusion, has emerged as a major new option for managing 'heart attack' patients. While some clinical trials have been encouraging, there have also been failures and there is little understanding of the multiplicity of factors that lead to the outcome. In this overview paper, the opportunities and challenges in applying biophotonic techniques to regenerative medicine, exemplified by the challenge of stem cell therapy of ischemic heart disease, are considered. The focus is on optical imaging to track stem cell distribution and fate, and optical spectroscopies and/or imaging to monitor the structural remodeling of the tissue and the resulting functional changes. The scientific, technological, and logistics issues involved in moving some of these techniques from pre-clinical research mode ultimately into the clinic are also highlighted.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 669-681 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Journal of Biophotonics |
Volume | 2 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 2009 |
Keywords
- Biophotonics
- Cardiac
- Optical imaging
- Optical spectroscopy
- Regeneration
- Stem cells
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Materials Science(all)
- Engineering(all)
- Physics and Astronomy(all)
- Chemistry(all)
- Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology(all)