Editorial
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2015. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Stem Cells. Jul 26, 2015; 7(6): 894-898
Published online Jul 26, 2015. doi: 10.4252/wjsc.v7.i6.894
Enhancing endothelial progenitor cell for clinical use
Lei Ye, Kian-Keong Poh
Lei Ye, National Heart Research Institute Singapore, National Heart Centre Singapore, Singapore 169609, Singapore
Kian-Keong Poh, Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 119077, Singapore
Kian-Keong Poh, Department of Cardiology, National University Heart Center, National University Health System, Singapore 119228, Singapore
Author contributions: Both authors contributed to this manuscript.
Conflict-of-interest statement: None.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Correspondence to: Kian-Keong Poh, MBBChir, FRCP, FACC, Associate Professor, Department of Cardiology, National University Heart Centre, National University Health System, 1E, Kent Ridge Road, NUHS Tower Block, Level 9, Singapore 119228, Singapore. kian_keong_poh@nuhs.edu.sg
Telephone: +65-92373289 Fax: +65-68722998
Received: February 2, 2015
Peer-review started: February 4, 2015
First decision: March 20, 2015
Revised: April 3, 2015
Accepted: May 16, 2015
Article in press: May 18, 2015
Published online: July 26, 2015
Processing time: 179 Days and 20.3 Hours
Core Tip

Core tip: Circulating endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have important potential for use in the treatment of ischemic diseases. However, their clinical application is limited by the lack of unambiguous and consistent definitions. This article reviews the definition of EPCs, their status in subjects with cardiovascular disease and discusses strategies to enhance EPCs for treatment of ischemic diseases. In patients with cardiovascular conditions who may require EPC administration, EPC numbers are low and EPCs are dysfunctional. Augmenting these cells may eventually improve their clinical efficacy.