L44	Functional assessment of circulating cells.
J.Waltenberger
Academic Hospital Maastricht, Cardiovascular Research Institute, Maastricht, NL.

Circulating cells have been shown to contribute to tissue repair processes. Circulating cells are released from the bone marrow secondary to various stimuli. Moreover, immature cells isolated from the bone marrow or from peripheral blood are being used for cell therapy approaches. One such example is the application into a coronary artery following acute myocardial infarction. The functional contribution of circulating cells to local repair, either following release from the bone marrow or following local therapeutic application, is dependant on a number of well-defined steps including adhesion, the ability to migrate and to proliferate and the ability to maintain their viability. There is initial evidence from own previous work (Waltenberger et al., Circulation 107:158-90; 2000) that pathological conditions such as the presence of diabetes mellitus can negatively influence the function of circulating cells. In the meantime, this hypothesis has been confirmed several times by others. The negative effect of different cardiovascular risk factors on the function of circulating cells will be shown and discussed. In addition, the influence of medical therapy on cell function will be discussed. Finally, data on the functional analysis of circulating cells in a post-MI scenario will be presented.

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