T cells can be programmed to help damaged hearts. Normally, an injury to the heart, such as a heart attack, activates a subclass of cells known as cardiac fibroblasts, which deposit additional extracellular matrix proteins, resulting in fibrosis, which worsens heart function and signals to cardiomyocytes, negatively impacting their function.
A group of scientists in the United States and Germany engineered T cells that identify the pathological fibroblast using a protein unique to the latter cells. They show in mice that, following heart injury, the engineered T cells are able to eliminate the fibroblasts that have gone awry in the heart and improve cardiac function.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Stower, H. Immunotherapy for heart injury. Nat Med 25, 1799 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-019-0688-8
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41591-019-0688-8