New technology uses heartbeats to heal the heart

A team of Portuguese researchers from the University of Porto's Institute for Research and Innovation in Health (i3S) and the University of Coimbra's Centre for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (CNC-UC) has developed a smart cardiac patch designed to improve heart function following a myocardial infarction.

The smart medical device is made of a special piezoelectric biomaterial that uses the heart's own beats to enhance its electrical activity and support recovery after a heart attack. The results of this novel therapeutic approach were recently published in the journal Materials Today Bio.

The challenge came from the CNC-UC team, based at the Centre for Innovative Biomedicine and Biotechnology (CiBB) and led by researcher Lino Ferreira: “In vitro tests with these patches, which release an electric charge, were very promising, so we decided to test them in animal models of myocardial infarction to evaluate their efficacy and safety.”

This prompted a collaboration with researcher Diana Nascimento from i3S and the ICBAS School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, whose expertise in animal models enabled the team to explore new therapeutic approaches for the heart.

"There are only a few biomaterials designed to improve the conductivity of the heart, and those that do tend to work passively," explains Diana Nascimento. "This patch is unique because, when placed on the surface of the heart, it takes advantage of the heartbeat to generate new electrical impulses." In this study, she adds, "We investigated its potential to improve the heart's response to myocardial infarction, which remains one of the leading causes of death worldwide

Luís Monteiro, who holds a PhD in Experimental Biology and Biomedicine from the University of Coimbra and is the first author of the paper, notes that “tests on mice showed that piezoelectric biomaterials improve the heart’s electrical conduction and support its recovery after an infarction. Furthermore, in tests on pig hearts, the application of the device did not interfere with normal cardiac function, confirming its safety.”

Looking ahead, Lino Ferreira adds that “this innovative therapeutic strategy could eventually help reduce the risk of arrhythmias — one of the main, and potentially fatal, complications of myocardial infarction.”

The two research teams are already exploring other potential uses of this smart biomaterial through the European project REBORN, including combining its beneficial properties with controlled drug release to enhance cardiac tissue regeneration.

^{Translation: Diana Taborda [DCM-UC]}