UW researchers have engineered heart tissue that beats like a tiny human heart

In case you’re looking for a unique Valentine’s Day story, I have a possibility for you: 

• UW researchers have engineered heart tissue that beats like a tiny human heart.
• Their system is made up of roughly a million heart cells that contract and relax in concert (B-roll available). 
• These cells form tissues that are slightly longer than a grain of rice and grow between two posts. When these “mini-hearts” beat, they push and pull the posts, which the researchers can measure.
• The team is using this system to screen for drugs that could help protect the heart against COVID-19. 
• This system has also gone up into space to study what happens to astronauts’ hearts in zero gravity. 
• More details about this project here.
• Soundbites and B-roll available. 

For more information, contact Nathan Sniadecki at [email protected] (professor of mechanical engineering, available for interviews Feb. 11) and Samantha Bremner at [email protected] (bioengineering doctoral student, available for interviews Feb. 12).