Molecular imaging of cardiac regenerative medicine

Ischemic heart disease is the leading cause of death globally by creating irreversible loss of cardiomyocytes and subsequent deterioration of cardiac function. To help repair the injured myocardium, promising approaches in regenerative medicine focus on rejuvenating the damaged heart. In this review, we highlight recent progress in molecular imaging applications for cardiac regenerative medicine in vivo including tracking cell delivery and retention, monitoring cell fates, evaluating therapeutic efficacy, and assessing side effects. We also discuss future directions to address two major challenges in this field, namely, improving the sensitivity of stem cell detection and advancing functional imaging of cell fates in vivo. We conclude that molecular imaging is crucial for facilitating regenerative medicine. Rapid progress in molecular imaging makes it a valuable tool to achieve the ultimate goal of improving cardiovascular outcomes.