Methods for mitigating cardiac aging and stress and improviing cardiac function

2:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the anti-Lin28+ antibody carries or is conjugated to a cytotoxic payload.

3:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid composition that is capable of inhibiting or decreasing the activity of Lin28+, or ablating or killing a Lin28+-expressing cardiac cell is or comprises an inhibitory nucleic acid.

4:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the compound capable of inhibiting or decreasing the activity of Lin28+, or ablating or killing a Lin28+-expressing cardiac cell comprises:
• a small molecule, a lipid, a saccharide or a polysaccharide.

6:

• The method of claim 1, wherein polypeptide, the nucleic acid and/or the compound is formulated as a pharmaceutical composition, or is formulated for administration in vivo;
• or formulated for enteral or parenteral administration, or for oral, intravenous (IV) or intrathecal (IT) administration, wherein optionally the compound or formulation is administered orally, parenterally, by inhalation spray, nasally, topically, intrathecally, intrathecally, intracerebrally, epidurally, intracranially or rectally.

7:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the nucleic acid comprises or is contained in a nucleic acid construct or a chimeric or a recombinant nucleic acid, or an expression cassette, vector, plasmid, phagemid or artificial chromosome, optionally stably integrated into the cell's chromosome, or optionally stably episomally expressed, and optionally the cell is a cardiac cell.

8:

• A kit comprising a compound, nucleic acid or polypeptide, or a formulation or a pharmaceutical composition, as used in a method of claim 1.

9-10. (canceled)

11:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the cardiac cells impaired or functionally diminished have reduced proliferative capacity and/or polyploidy.

12:

• The method of claim 1, wherein the polypeptide composition is or is comprised of an anti-Lin28+ antibody.

13:

• The method of claim 12, wherein the anti-Lin28+ antibody is a monoclonal antibody.

14:

• The method of claim 2, wherein the cytotoxic payload comprises a cytotoxic compound or cytotoxic radionuclide.

15:

• The method of claim 14, wherein the cytotoxic compound comprises calicheamicin, duocarymycin, a ribosome-inactivating protein (RIP) or ricin.

16:

• The method of claim 2, wherein the radionuclide comprises astatine-211, yttrium-90, lutetium-177 or iodine-131.

17:

• The method of claim 2, wherein the cytotoxic payload is covalently linked to the anti-Lin28+ antibody by a linker compound.

18:

• The method of claim 17, wherein the linker compound comprises disuccinimidyl suberate (DSS)) or the cytotoxic payload is conjugated to the anti-Lin28+ antibody using a metal chelator.

19:

• The method of claim 17, wherein the linker compound comprises diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA) or 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid (DOTA).

20:

• The method of claim 3, wherein the inhibitory nucleic acid comprises:
• an RNAi inhibitory nucleic acid molecule, a double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) molecule, a microRNA (mRNA), a small interfering RNA (siRNA), an antisense RNA, a short hairpin RNA (shRNA), or a ribozyme capable of capable of inhibiting or decreasing the expression or activity of a Lin28+ protein, transcript and/or gene.

21:

• The method of claim 6, wherein the formulation or pharmaceutical composition is contained in or carried in a nanoparticle, a particle, a micelle or a liposome or lipoplex, a polymersome, a polyplex or a dendrimer;

22:

• The method of claim 6, wherein the compound, polypeptide or the nucleic acid, or the formulation or pharmaceutical composition, is formulated as, or contained in, a nanoparticle, a liposome, a tablet, a pill, a capsule, a gel, a geltab, a liquid, a powder, an emulsion, a lotion, an aerosol, a spray, a lozenge, an aqueous or a sterile or an injectable solution, or an implant.