Mackie, Alexande R; Klyachko, Ekaterina; Thorne, Tina; Schultz, Kathryn M; Millay, Meredith; Ito, Aiko; Kamide, Christin E; Liu, Ting; Gupta, Rajesh; Sahoo, Susmita; Misener, Sol; Kishore, Raj; Losordo, Douglas W
description
Ischemic cardiovascular disease represents one of the largest epidemics currently facing the aging population. Current literature has illustrated the efficacy of autologous, stem cell therapies as novel strategies for treating these disorders. The CD34+ hematopoetic stem cell has shown significant promise in addressing myocardial ischemia by promoting angiogenesis that helps preserve the functionality of ischemic myocardium. Unfortunately, both viability and angiogenic quality of autologous CD34+ cells decline with advanced age and diminished cardiovascular health.