THE APPLICATION OF BLOOD-DERIVED ANGIOGENIC CELLS (BDACS) IN A MURINE HIND LIMB ISCHEMIA MODEL

Abstract

Critical limb ischemia (CLI) is a severe and painful peripheral arterial disease. Therapeutic angiogenesis using autologous cells holds great promise for CLI treatment, but is often limited by the low cell numbers and prolonged in vitro expansion. Our group has previously developed a monocyte-derived cell type, Blood-derived Angiogenic Cells (BDAC), that can be generated in clinically relevant numbers within 5 days, and are pro-angiogenic in vitro and in vivo. This thesis further demonstrated the therapeutic efficacy of BDAC through a pre-clinical model of murine hindlimb ischemia. A single injection of BDAC rescued most limb tissues from ischemia-induced necrosis. Magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) studies demonstrated that BDAC treatment accelerated reperfusion in the ischemic limbs. Furthermore, BDAC treatment reduced tissue damage and accelerated functional recovery. This thesis validated the therapeutic potential of BDAC in a disease model. It also suggests that other mechanisms besides angiogenesis may contribute to BDAC’s therapeutic effect.