09/01/2026
☘️We can make heart cells from iPSCs that beat. But can they truly replace damaged heart muscle?
That gap is much larger than it first appears.
iPSC-derived cardiomyocytes often remain fetal-like in their electrophysiology, metabolism, structure, and contractile function. Recent advances in cardiac organoids and engineered heart tissues suggest that maturation may depend on something we have underestimated: the developmental environment surrounding the cell.
HSCs develop through the fetal liver. T cells require thymic education. Could heart cells also need a developmental “education” before becoming truly functional adult tissue?
Our latest StemImmune Perspective explores the journey from cell identity to cell function.