OSAKA — A beating lab-grown heart made from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells was recently shown to reporters for the first time ahead of the World Expo that begins in Osaka on April 13.
An “iPS heart” is seen on display at the Pasona Natureverse pavilion for the World Expo in Osaka’s Konohana Ward on April 2, 2025. (Mainichi/Ririko Maeda)
Osaka University Professor Emeritus Yoshiki Sawa, the executive producer of the exhibit, expressed his hopes that seeing the heart “will help people realize the importance of life.”
The “iPS heart” displayed on April 2 with a diameter of approximately 3.5 centimeters was built from iPS cells differentiated into cardiomyocytes — the cells that generate a heartbeat — and processed into cardiac muscle sheets. It could be seen pulsing on its own within a red culture fluid though it cannot pump blood like a real heart. As one of the centerpieces of the Expo, its movements are said to change depending on the culture environment among other factors, with a possibility that its pulse will grow stronger during the event.
The heart is being developed by Cuorips Inc., a startup with Sawa as chief technology officer. The company is already doing clinical trials of human transplants of the cardiac muscle sheets. Sawa emphasized the meaning of the exhibit, saying, “Further research could revolutionize the treatment of heart disease. I hope iPS hearts may symbolize a future in which heart surgery is no longer necessary.”
The iPS heart along with a cardiac muscle sheet will be shown at the Pasona Natureverse pavilion, hosted by recruiting agency Pasona Group Inc., to introduce cutting-edge medicine and other technologies.
(Japanese original by Yin Tanaka, Osaka Lifestyle, Science & Environment News Department; video by Ririko Maeda, Osaka Photo and Video Department)
AloJapan.com