Gold nanofibers in engineered heart tissue can enhance
electrical signalling, TAU researchers find
Heart tissue sustains irreparable damage in the wake of a
heart attack. Because cells in the heart cannot multiply and the cardiac muscle
contains few stem cells, the tissue is unable to repair itself — it becomes
fibrotic and cannot contract properly.
In their search for innovative methods to restore heart
function, scientists have been exploring cardiac "patches" that could
be transplanted into the body to replace damaged heart tissue. Now, in his
Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine Laboratory, Dr. Tal Dvir and his
PhD student Michal Shevach of Tel Aviv University's Department of Molecular
Microbiology and Biotechnology and the Center for Nanoscience and
Nanotechnology, together with their colleagues, are literally setting a gold
standard in cardiac tissue engineering.