Scientists in Shanghai have used stem cells to create the world\u2019s first laboratory-grown sinoatrial node \u2013 the tiny structure that acts as the heart\u2019s natural pacemaker.<\/p>\n
Capable of beating autonomously, the organoid is a breakthrough that researchers say could transform cardiac disease research and drug screening.<\/p>\n
The heart\u2019s ability to beat continuously and rhythmically depends on the sinoatrial node, which is nestled inside the right atrial chamber.<\/p>\n
China turns to AI to ease overstretched healthcare system<\/p>\n
Acting as the heart\u2019s \u201cmaster conductor\u201d, the node continuously sends out electrical signals regulated by the nervous system. These signals dictate when the atria and ventricles \u2013 the upper and lower chambers of the heart \u2013 should contract, ensuring blood is pumped efficiently around the body.<\/p>\n
Should this master conductor fail, the heartbeat can slow to dangerous levels or pause entirely. In severe cases, the condition is life-threatening.<\/p>\n
The Shanghai researchers have successfully engineered a biological pacemaker in the lab that could offer a new way to control abnormal heart rhythms.<\/p>\n
Using human pluripotent stem cells \u2013 which can self-renew and develop into many different cell types \u2013 the team constructed a 3D sinoatrial node organoid.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Scientists in Shanghai have used stem cells to create the world\u2019s first laboratory-grown sinoatrial node \u2013 the tiny…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":455574,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[212422,988,38873,163,85,46,5733,212423,14527,9438,212425,212424],"class_list":["post-455573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-cell-stem-cell","tag-chinese-academy-of-sciences","tag-fudan-university","tag-health","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-shanghai","tag-sinoatrial-node","tag-stanford","tag-stem-cells","tag-suny-downstate-health-sciences-university","tag-zhongshan-hospital"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=455573"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/455573\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/455574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=455573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=455573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=455573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}