Alginate sulfate-nanoparticles loaded with hepatocyte growth factor and insulin-like growth factor-1 improve left ventricular repair in a porcine model of myocardial ischemia reperfusion injury

Nanomedicine offers great potential for the treatment of cardiovascular disease and particulate systems have the capacity to markedly improve bioavailability of therapeutics. The delivery of pro-angiogenic hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and pro-survival and pro-myogenic insulin-like growth factor (IGF-1) encapsulated in Alginate-Sulfate nanoparticles (AlgS-NP) might improve left ventricular (LV) functional recovery after myocardial infarction (MI). In a porcine ischemia–reperfusion model, MI is induced by 75 min balloon occlusion of the mid-left anterior descending coronary artery followed by reperfusion. After 1 week, pigs (n = 12) with marked LV-dysfunction (LV ejection fraction, LVEF < 45%) are randomized to fusion imaging-guided intramyocardial injections of 8 mg AlgS-NP prepared with 200 µg HGF and IGF-1 (HGF/IGF1-NP) or PBS (Control). Intramyocardial injection is safe and pharmacokinetic studies of Cy5-labeled NP confirm superior cardiac retention compared to intracoronary infusion. Seven weeks after intramyocardial-injection of HGF/IGF1-NP, infarct size, measured using magnetic resonance imaging, is significantly smaller than in controls and is associated with increased coronary flow reserve. Importantly, HGF/IGF1-NP-treated pigs show significantly increased LVEF accompanied by improved myocardial remodeling. These findings demonstrate the feasibility and efficacy of using AlgS-NP as a delivery system for growth factors and offer the prospect of innovative treatment for refractory ischemic cardiomyopathy.