Engineered human heart tissue shows Stanford Medicine researchers the mechanics of tachycardia

Researchers engineered stem cell-derived heart tissues to study how tachycardia affects the heart and to uncover the inner workings of our body’s engine.

Researchers grew more than 400 heart tissue samples from stem cells to look at how heart cells function, a process that spanned more than four years .

When researchers increase the amount of NAD , the heart’s gas pedal is thrusted, and the SERCA protein strengthens the heartbeat of the engineered cells.

When decreased, the engineered heart tissues hit the brakes, making them beat more weakly.

By giving patients NAD through an off-the-shelf supplement or by IV injection, clinicians believe they can restore the chemical balance.