The Workshop will provide participants with all the necessary knowledge and practical skill to implement this technique in their own laboratories.
Living Myocardial Slices (LMS) are a novel preparation of intermediate complexity that can be used to study heart biology. LMS possess complex 3D structure, heterocellularity and intact extracellular matrix that makes them ideal for functional and structural studies. LMS can be prepared from several species, including human. Multiple slices can be produced from each biopsy, producing several samples for experimentation (Pitoulis et al., 2020; Watson et al., 2019, 2017). LMS are highly viable, stable in culture and can be used for toxicology and pharmacology experiments, to study pathophysiology and treatments for cardiac disease.
While LMS are prepared by a straightforward method – simple mechanical dissociation using a vibrating microtome, several essential details contribute to the quality and viability, and this explains the variability of results in different laboratories. This workshop will discuss LMS in the context of other myocardial in-vitro models, highlighting strengths and limitations of the technique, demonstrating the preparation of this model and offering the participants a hands-on opportunity to learn this technique.
The workshop will take place on the 4th & 5th of September 2024, at the Imperial College London Hammersmith Campus (National Heart and Lung Institute), following the London ESC Congress. The first day will entail a series of lectures detailing an overview of the LMS method, interrogation approaches, culturing, stimulating and biochemical analyses, followed by a practical demonstration of the method. The second day will provide a hands-on opportunity for every workshop attendee to individually complete LMS preparation and data collection. This will mean the time the workshop ends will vary; we can be flexible and ensure all attendees with a time constraint (flights for example) will complete the method before their deadline. We will meet at 10:00am on both days, and food and drink will be provided throughout.
References:
Pitoulis, F.G., Watson, S.A., Perbellini, F., Terracciano, C.M., 2020. Myocardial slices come to age: an intermediate complexity in vitro cardiac model for translational research. Cardiovasc. Res. 116, 1275–1287. https://doi.org/10.1093/cvr/cvz341
Watson, S.A., Scigliano, M., Bardi, I., Ascione, R., Terracciano, C.M., Perbellini, F., 2017. Preparation of viable adult ventricular myocardial slices from large and small mammals. 2639. https://doi.org/10.1038/nprot.2017.139
Watson, S.A., Terracciano, C.M., Perbellini, F., 2019. Myocardial Slices: an Intermediate Complexity Platform for Translational Cardiovascular Research. Cardiovasc. Drugs Ther. 33, 239–244. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10557-019-06853-5
If you have any queries, please contact Sam Reitemeier (s.reitemeier@imperial.ac.uk) who will be happy to describe the workshop in more detail.
Fee: £120 Academic, £240 Industry.
Deadline: Extended to the 19th August 2024.