Prof. Gepstein’s research laboratory centers on the emerging fields of cardiovascular regenerative medicine and the treatment of cardiac disorders. His lab was one of the first in the world to generate beating human heart cells from embryonic stem cells. The new heart tissue could potentially be used for the regeneration of heart muscle following a heart attack, and for the creation of genetically-engineered cell grafts to treat cardiac arrhythmias.
In early 2020, Prof. Gepstein with colleagues from Rambam and the McEwen Stem Cell Institute at the University Health Network in Toronto, used human stem cells to produce 3D engineered cardiac tissue of chamber-specific heart cells. Then, they created a model that simulates the most common type of irregular heartbeat, atrial fibrillation, to study the effect of relevant drugs in preventing or stopping the arrhythmia after it has begun.
Prof. Gepstein received his bachelor’s degree in medical sciences (summa cum laude), his M.D. (summa cum laude), and his Ph.D. from the Technion Faculty of Medicine. He was trained in both internal medicine and cardiology at the Rambam Medical Center.
