Of cells and tissues: Identifying the elements of a diabetic cardiac in vitro study model.

This study aimed to elucidate the impact of advanced glycation end products (AGEs) and glucose shock on cardiomyocyte viability, gene expression, cardiac biomarkers, and cardiac contractility. Firstly, AGEs were generated in-house, and their concentration was confirmed using absorbance measurements. AC16 cardiomyocytes were then exposed to varying doses of AGEs, resulting in dose-dependent decreases in cell viability.

Engineering approaches for cardiac organoid formation and their characterization.

Cardiac organoids are 3-dimensional (3D) structures composed of tissue or niche-specific cells, obtained from diverse sources, encapsulated in either a naturally derived or synthetic, extracellular matrix scaffold, and include exogenous biochemical signals such as essential growth factors. The overarching goal of developing cardiac organoid models is to establish a functional integration of cardiomyocytes with physiologically relevant cells, tissues, and structures like capillary-like networks composed of endothelial cells. These organoids used to model human heart anatomy, physiology, and disease pathologies in vitro have the potential to solve many issues related to cardiovascular drug discovery and fundamental research.