Protein-free media for cardiac differentiation of hPSCs in 2000 mL suspension culture.

Background: Commonly used media for the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) contain high concentrations of proteins, in particular albumin, which is prone to quality variations and presents a substantial cost factor, hampering the clinical translation of in vitro-generated cardiomyocytes for heart repair. To overcome these limitations, we have developed chemically defined, entirely protein-free media based on RPMI, supplemented with L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate (AA-2P) and either the non-ionic surfactant Pluronic F-68 or a specific polyvinyl alcohol (PVA).

Methods And Results: Both media compositions enable the efficient, directed differentiation of embryonic and induced hPSCs, matching the cell yields and cardiomyocyte purity ranging from 85 to 99% achieved with the widely used protein-based CDM3 medium.

A Possible Role of Tetrodotoxin-Sensitive Na Channels for Oxidation-Induced Late Na Currents in Cardiomyocytes.

An accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cardiomyocytes can induce pro-arrhythmogenic late Na currents by removing the inactivation of voltage-gated Na channels including the tetrodotoxin (TTX)-resistant cardiac α-subunit Nav1.5 as well as TTX-sensitive α-subunits like Nav1.2 and Nav1.

[Does medicinal cannabis or cannabis consumption have an influence on the perioperative anesthesiological management?].

The greatly increasing use of medicinal cannabis products as well as the upcoming legalization of cannabis not only require a general re-evaluation of how these substances might be classified as illegal drugs, but also enforce a critical view on the possible consequences that cannabis consumption might have on the anesthesiological strategies applied for surgical procedures. Although high-quality clinical studies are still lacking, several clinical studies meanwhile indicate that an active preoperative cannabis consumption seems to be associated with relevant pathophysiological aspects. Patients who regularly consume high doses of cannabis show an increased risk of cardiovascular and respiratory complications as well as the postoperative nausea and vomitting (PONV) associated with anesthesia.