Induced cardiomyocytes-integrated conductive microneedle patch for treating myocardial infarction

Myocardial infarction (MI) has become a serious social burden worldwide for its high mortality. Here, we propose a novel induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs)-integrated conductive microneedle (MN) patch for treating MI. The cardiac patches are composed of drug-encapsulated MN bottom layer, parallel-aligned carbon nanotube (CNT) conductive middle layer, and a methacrylated gelatin (GelMA) hydrogel scaffold upper layer. The anisotropic architecture of the MN patches could induce the directional alignment of CMs, while its conductive element could provide a platform for the interaction among cells. Different from direct stem cell therapeutic patches, the present cardiac patches are utilized for animal test after inducing the iPSCs to CMs, thus ensuring the orientation of differentiation. It is demonstrated that when applied for MI treatment, the functional MN array patch could firmly adhere to the heart and release the encapsulated drugs to increase the functionality. In addition, the existence of aligned CNT layer not only ensures the simultaneous contraction of CMs distributed on the patch, but also makes these cells to keep synergies with the heart in vivo. These features make the conductive MN array patches with iPSC-derived CMs integration an ideal therapy strategy for clinical treatment of cardiac diseases.