Karaikal: Recent advancements in
stem cell research have brought hope about the successful treatment of diabetic
heart disease (DHD), renowned New Zealand-based researcher in cardiovascular
diseases Dr Rajesh Katare said on Tuesday.
DHD affects the muscular tissues of the heart, leading to
complications, and it has been demonstrated that resident stem cells of
myocardium can be stimulated to repair and replace degenerated cardiac
myocytes, resulting in a novel therapeutic effect and ultimately cardiac
regeneration, he said.
Katare, the director of the cardiovascular research division at
the University of Otago, New Zealand, was delivering the keynote address at the
continuing medical education programme on the role of micro-RNAs and stem cells
in cardiac regeneration in diabetic heart disease at the Karaikal campus of
Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education (JIPMER).
Presenting clinical evidences, Katare said stem cell therapy
certainly presented new hope for successfully treating DHD.
Dr Subash Chandra Parija, Director, JIPMER, pointed out that it
was the first such programme on the role of stem cells in cardiac regeneration
in the whole of the country.
He said that since diabetes was highly prevalent in the country,
providing treatment for DHD had become a big challenge.
Patients suffering from the condition have to undergo lifelong
treatment and medications. “In this backdrop, advancements in stem cell therapy
assume significance,” he said. -PTI
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