Effect of Intramyocardial Injection of Mesenchymal Precursor Cells on Heart Function in People Receiving an LVAD

Mount Sinai Health System

Status and phase

Terminated

Phase 2

Conditions

Heart Failure

Treatments

Drug: Cryoprotective media alone

Biological: Mesenchymal Precursor cells (RevascorTM)

Study type

Interventional

Funder types

Other

Industry

NIH

Identifiers

NCT00927784

P50HL077096 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

GCO 08-1093

Details and patient eligibility

About

Left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) are one treatment option for people with congestive heart failure. This study will evaluate the safety of injecting mesenchymal precursor cells (MPCs) into the heart during LVAD implantation surgery and examine if injecting MPCs into the heart is effective at improving heart function.

Full description

Congestive heart failure is a major health problem and recent estimates indicate that end-stage heart failure with a 2-year mortality rate of 70-80% affects over 60,000 people in the United States each year. For these patients, treatment options are extremely limited. Less than 3,000 heart transplants are available each year because of the severely limited supply of donor hearts. Implantable LVADs, routinely used to support heart transplantation patients who decompensate awaiting a donor heart, were approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002 for long-term support when heart transplantation is not an option. Few patients, however, achieve sufficient recovery to warrant LVAD explantation and those who do must still contend with ventricular dysfunction. MPCs are normally present in human bone marrow and have been shown to increase the development of blood vessels and new heart muscle cells. The purpose of this study is to determine the safety of injecting MPCs into the heart during LVAD implantation surgery. In addition, this study will examine whether injecting MPCs into the heart is effective at improving heart function.

This study will enroll people who are on the waiting list to receive a donor heart and who are undergoing LVAD implantation surgery. Before the surgery, participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group of participants will have MPCs injected into their heart during LVAD surgery and the other group of participants will have a control solution (placebo) injected into their heart during the surgery. A portion of heart muscle removed during the surgery will be analyzed. Participants will be monitored by study researchers and blood samples will be collected 12 hours after the LVAD surgery and at 1, 7, 21, 60, and 90 days after the surgery. After that, a medical history review, physical examination, and blood collection will occur every 60 days until a heart transplant occurs or until 12 months after the LVAD implantation, whichever comes first. Heart function testing, which will include an echocardiogram, neuronal function testing, and a 6-minute walk test, will occur 60 and 90 days after the LVAD implantation, and every 2 months thereafter until a heart transplant occurs or until 12 months after the LVAD implantation, whichever comes first.

Enrollment

10 patients

Sex

All

Ages

18+ years old

Volunteers

No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

Signed informed consent, release of medical information, and Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) documents
Age 18 years or older
If the participant or partner is of childbearing potential, he or she must be willing to use adequate contraception (hormonal or barrier method or abstinence) from the time of screening and for a period of at least 16 weeks after LVAD implantation
Female participants of childbearing potential must have a negative serum pregnancy test at screening
Admitted to the clinical center at the time of study entry
Listed with the United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) for heart transplantation
Clinical indication and accepted candidate for implantation of an FDA- approved LVAD as a bridge to transplantation

Exclusion criteria

Cardiothoracic surgery within 30 days of study entry
Heart attack within 30 days of study entry
Prior heart transplantation, left ventricular (LV) reduction surgery, or cardiomyoplasty
Acute reversible cause of heart failure (e.g., myocarditis, profound hypothyroidism)
Anticipated requirement for biventricular mechanical support
Stroke within 30 days of study entry
Received investigational intervention within 30 days of study entry
Platelet count less than 100,000/uL within 24 hours of study entry
Active systemic infection within 48 hours of study entry
Presence of greater than 10% anti-human leukocyte antigen (HLA) antibody titers with known specificity to the MPC donor HLA antigens
Known hypersensitivity to dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO), murine, and/or bovine products
History of cancer prior to screening (excluding basal cell carcinoma)
Acute or chronic infectious disease, including but not limited to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
Treatment and/or an incompleted follow-up treatment of any investigational therapy within 6 months of study entry
Active participation in other research therapy for cardiovascular repair/regeneration
Prior recipient of stem precursor cell therapy for cardiac repair
Pregnant or breastfeeding at the time of study entry