Atta Behfar

Regenerative medicine: On the vanguard of health care

The World Health Organization reports that a staggering 36 million of the 57 million annual global deaths are due to a rampant pandemic of chronic diseases.1 Success in managing acute conditions has reduced early mortality but has concurrently precipitated a higher incidence of chronic diseases among survivors. Current evidence-based and cost-effective interventions are insufficient to meet the growing challenge posed by noncommunicable chronic conditions, driven in part by the aging of the population and the associated increase in degenerative diseases.2 Reparative therapies targeting the cause of progressive cell destruction and irreversible loss of tissue function are largely lacking. Transformation of the health care horizon will require unprecedented innovation to extend the reach of clinical practice beyond the current standard of care. New knowledge on disease causes and cures will enable delivery of high-quality care that more effectively addresses the unmet needs of our patients.

Commitment of embryonic stem cells toward a cardiac lineage: molecular mechanisms and evidence for a promising therapeutic approach for heart failure

ANNABELLE MÉRY, EVANGELIA PAPADIMOU, DANA ZEINEDDINE, CLAUDINE MÉNARD, ATTA BEHFAR, LEONID V. ZINGMAN, DENICE M. HODGSON, JEAN-MICHEL RAUZIER, GARVAN C. KANE, CARMEN PEREZ-TERZIC, ANDRÉ TERZIC and MICHEL PUCÉAT* Centre de Recherches de Biochimie Macromoléculaire, CNRS FRE 2593, Montpellier, France; Division of Cardiovascular Diseases, Department of Medicine, Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA; INSERM U 390, Montpellier, France; Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, USA