Health care professionals predict that heart disease will be the number one cause of death worldwide by 2020. All the more reason a major research breakthrough in the U.S. state of Washington is making global headlines. Researchers at the University of Washington have successfully restored damaged heart muscle in monkeys by using heart cells created from human embryonic “stem” cells.
While researchers at the University’s lab have made a significant breakthrough, they need to overcome a few challenges before their work can be applied to human heart disease. The monkeys developed irregular heartbeats for two to three weeks after the stem cell injections, and researchers have to make sure human immune systems won’t reject the heart tissue. CCTV’s Chris Casquejo reports.