A new noninvasive stem cell solution is capable of tracking cardiomyocytes produced from induced pluripotent stem cells long-term after it's been implanted into the heart. IPSCs are currently used to treat patients suffering from cardiac diseases. 

According to research, these cells can produce heart muscle cells or cardiomyocytes, which allows damaged tissue to regenerate and repair itself. However, despite its popularity, there still aren't enough long-term studies on the process.

Current tracking methods are particularly limited, and usually, involve optical scanning using xenogeneic fluorescent proteins to track cells in immune-deficient organisms. The problem among this method is that these proteins can potentially trigger rejection from the body's immune system, making it an unreliable process. 

The new tacking platform aims to overcome these limitations. Through modern gene editing, the researchers were able to insert a gene called sodium/iodide symporter. Typically found in the thyroid gland, the NIS gene is produced normally in the body, meaning that it won't trigger an immune response.

Using CRISPR-Cas9 editing, a rhesus NIS gene can be safely integrated into the genome of rhesus macaque iPSCs. There can be monitored through PET and CAT scans. The NIS-labeled heart cells looked and functioned similarly to the heart cells produced from iPSCs outdoors the number. 

Supplanting transplantation into the damaged heart tissue, the engrafted cells could be visualized until the study's conclusion at 10 weeks post-injection, said Cynthia Dunbar, M.D. This leads to conclude that this new molecular imaging platform is primed for use in preclinical models and clinical trials, and may bring closer to the long-awaited era of gene therapy for heart disease and other diseases.