Comprehensive promotion of iPSC-CM maturation by integrating metabolic medium with nanopatterning and electrostimulation

Research output: Contribution to journalResearch articleContributedpeer-review

Contributors

Abstract

The immaturity of human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (iPSC-CMs) is a major limitation for their use in drug screening to identify pro-arrhythmogenic or cardiotoxic molecules. Here, we demonstrate an approach that combines lipid-enriched maturation medium with a high concentration of calcium, nanopatterning of culture surfaces and electrostimulation to generate iPSC-CMs with advanced electrophysiological, structural and metabolic phenotypes. Systematic testing reveals that electrostimulation is the key driver of enhanced mitochondrial development and metabolic maturation and improved electrophysiological properties of iPSC-CMs. Increased calcium concentration strongly promotes electrophysiological maturation, while nanopatterning primarily facilitates sarcomere organisation with minor effect on electrophysiological properties. Transcriptome analysis reveals that activation of HMCES and TFAM targets contributes to mitochondrial development, whereas downregulation of MAPK/PI3K and SRF targets is associated with iPSC-CM polyploidy. These findings provide mechanistic insights into iPSC-CM maturation, paving the way for pharmacological responses that more closely resemble those of adult CMs.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Article number2785
JournalNature communications
Volume16
Issue number1
Publication statusPublished - 21 Mar 2025
Peer-reviewedYes

External IDs

PubMed 40118846
ORCID /0000-0002-3274-7163/work/185316033
ORCID /0000-0003-2514-9429/work/185317298
ORCID /0000-0002-8375-8233/work/185317487