Published on: Jun 13, 2025
A newly developed lab-grown material has demonstrated that some age-related changes in the heart may not only be slowed but potentially reversed. This discovery could pave the way for innovative therapies that rejuvenate the heart by targeting its surrounding environment rather than the heart cells themselves.
The study, recently published in Nature Materials, was led by Assistant Professor Jennifer Young from the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the College of Design and Engineering (CDE), National University of Singapore (NUS). Asst Prof Young also holds a position at the NUS Mechanobiology Institute (MBI).
The research centered on the extracellular matrix (ECM)—a complex network of proteins and molecules that supports and regulates heart cells. This scaffold-like structure not only holds cells in place but also transmits chemical signals essential for cell behavior and function.
As the heart ages, the ECM becomes stiffer and undergoes biochemical changes that can negatively affect heart cells—leading to scarring, reduced elasticity, and impaired performance.
Most ageing research tends to focus on changes within the cells themselves, explained Asst Prof Young. “Our work takes a different angle by examining how the surrounding environment—the ECM—contributes to heart ageing.”
To explore this, the researchers created a hybrid biomaterial known as DECIPHER (DECellularized In Situ Polyacrylamide Hydrogel-ECM hybrid), which merges natural heart tissue with a synthetic gel to replicate both the stiffness and biochemical profile of the ECM.
Until now, it’s been difficult to distinguish whether physical stiffness or biochemical signaling plays a greater role in ageing, since both occur together, said Avery Rui Sun, a PhD student at NUS CDE and MBI, and first author of the study. “The DECIPHER platform allows us to independently control these two factors—something that hasn’t been possible with native tissue-based systems.
When aged heart cells were placed on DECIPHER scaffolds mimicking the biochemical signals of a young ECM, the cells started to act more like their younger counterparts—even when the material retained a stiff structure. This transformation was accompanied by changes in gene expression affecting thousands of ageing- and function-related genes.
Conversely, when young heart cells were exposed to scaffolds simulating an aged ECM, they began showing signs of decline, even when the stiffness was low.
Our findings revealed that for aged cells, the biochemical environment plays a more critical role than stiffness,” said Asst Prof Young. “Remarkably, introducing youthful biochemical signals was enough to restore healthier function in old cells, even within a stiff matrix—like what we see in an aged heart.”
She added, “This suggests that if we can reinstate these youthful signals in the ageing heart, we may be able to reverse some of the functional decline and enhance heart performance.
Moreover, the team discovered that increased stiffness could drive premature ageing in young heart cells, indicating that selectively targeting ECM properties could slow or prevent age-related heart dysfunction.
Although still in the early stages, the research offers a promising new direction for therapies aimed at maintaining or rejuvenating heart health by focusing on the ECM. The team also believes that their DECIPHER platform could be adapted to investigate ageing and disease in other tissues.
“Tissue stiffness is a hallmark of many age-related conditions, not just in the heart,” said Asst Prof Young. “This approach could be extended to tissues like the kidney or skin, and applied to diseases such as fibrosis or cancer—where the mechanical environment significantly influences cell behavior.
Source: https://news.nus.edu.sg/new-biomaterial-shows-ageing-in-heart-could-be-reversed/
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