Project Humanize: A Step Towards Creating a Heart from Pluripotent Stem Cells
13.12.2024
Organ transplantation represents the ultimate solution for numerous serious diseases, but the availability of organs is sadly insufficient to meet global demands. In Italy alone, in 2024, there are approximately 8,000 patients on the waiting list, a situation that makes the search for alternative sources of organs urgent. One of the most promising solutions to address this issue could lie in the production of human organs from pluripotent stem cells. These cells have the ability to differentiate into any type of tissue or organ and, thanks to their capacity to multiply in the laboratory, could allow for the large-scale generation of human organs and tissues.
The Humanize project, funded by the Spanish foundation La Caixa with 1 million euros for three years, aims to develop technologies capable of identifying and producing human stem cells with high potential to generate organs. The research is focused on the human heart, as the shortage of donors for this organ is one of the most critical issues in the medical field. The principal investigators of the project, which focuses on the generation of a human heart, are Graziano Martello, professor in the Department of Biology at the University of Padua and director of the Pluripotent Stem Cell Biology Laboratory (Lab Martello), and Xabier Lopez Aranguren, researcher at Cima Universidad de Navarra in Spain.
Previous studies based on rodents have shown that pluripotent stem cells can generate entire organs, such as the heart and pancreas, in animals that, due to genetic defects, would not be able to generate them. These studies have also highlighted that not all rodent stem cells are capable of forming organs.
The goal of the Humanize project is to identify human stem cells with similar potential, capable of developing functional organs. The next step will be to verify, through animal models, whether the produced human stem cells can effectively contribute to the formation of organs. The verification of the project's underlying hypothesis, which will be experimentally tested in Spain, will focus on animals such as pigs, whose organs are already used for heart valve transplantation.
The impact of this research would not only improve the quality of life for patients awaiting transplants but also benefit the global healthcare system. If confirmed, the potential to produce human organs from pluripotent stem cells could solve the problem of donor scarcity and reduce the costs associated with treating patients on transplant waiting lists. Additionally, the development of technologies for human organ production would open new opportunities in the biotechnology sector, stimulating the creation of new companies and productive activities in a high-demand sector.
