Pericardial mRNA therapy for myocardial infarction

PROJECT SUMMARY Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the US. Myocardial infarction (MI) causes more than 557,650 deaths per year in the US. Inflammation is key to determine the MI outcomes. Chronic inflammation may lead to poor outcomes. Anti-inflammation treatment can improve the outcome. Stem cell derivates are well known anti-inflammation agents. Yet the use of stem cell derivates is hindered by safety concerns and elusive mechanism. So it is important to develop a drug that is safe and effective and is with known mechanisms. In this study, we will develop a new anti-inflammation drug. The drug is developed based on our previous mechanistic studies on stem cell derivates for heart repair. Safety and effectiveness of the drug will be studied in mouse and patient relevant pig models of MI. This drug will be injected into the pericardial space via a minimally invasive intrapericardial (iPC) injection procedure. This drug will be administrated immediately or 3 days after MI modeling. The animals will be followed up to 4-12 weeks after treatment. Heart function and morphology will be evaluated to determine therapeutic efficacy. Success in this study will pave groundwork for future IND application.