1. Role of Mesenchymal Stem Cells, Macrophages, and Biomaterials During Myocardial Repair

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a potentially lethal condition and remains one of the leading causes of death. Since heart tissue has a diminished capacity to regenerate itself, the current goal is to replace the damaged tissue with repair cells that have the capacity to recover heart function. Among the methods being investigated include the use of human-derived mesenchymal stem cell (MSC). Although these cells have not been shown to effectively produce functional cardiomyocytes, they have shown great potential to improve angiogenesis and cardiac function. Engineered cardiac patches composed of hMSCs and a biomaterial will inevitably be subjected to the inflammatory environment that follows the MI, and these interactions will play a crucial role during the remodeling process. This chapter describes the inflammatory environment found after an MI followed by a description of how MSCs can be used as part of a cardiac patch that can modulate the inflammatory response to improve healing.