Neonatal rat cardiomyocytes isolation, culture, and determination of MicroRNAs’ effects in proliferation

Abstract

Cardiomyocytes loss is a major contributor for many cardiovascular diseases including heart failure and myocardial infarction. Although extremely limited, adult cardiomyocytes are able to proliferate. Understanding the molecular mechanisms controlling cardiomyocytes proliferation is extremely important for enhancing cardiomyocyte proliferation to promote cardiac regeneration and repair. MicroRNAs (miRNAs, miRs) are powerful controllers of many essential biological processes including cell proliferation. Here, we described in detail a protocol for isolation and culture of neonatal rat cardiomyocytes and the determination of miRNAs’ effects in proliferation based on two well-established methods including EdU and Ki67 immunofluorescent stainings.