Am J Cardiovasc Dis 2012;2(1):75-83
Review Article
Recent concepts for the roles of progenitor/stem cell niche in heart repair
Yuliang Feng, Xi-Yong Yu, Yigang Wang
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45267,
USA; Medical Research Center of Guangdong General Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangdong
Provincial Cardiovascular Institute, Southern Medical University, 96 Dongchuan Road, Guangzhou 510080, China.
Received November 30, 2011; accepted December 10, 2011; Epub December 15, 2011; Published January 1, 2012
Abstract: Progenitor/stem cell (PSC) has shown great promise for generation in failing heart. Advances in PSC biology
have greatly enhanced our understanding of how PSC self-renewal, migration, maintenance of stemness, and cell-fate
commitment depend on the balance of complex signals in their microenvironment. Endogenous PSC existing within
structural and functional units known as PSC niches, which play important roles in directing PSC behavior. Recent years
have witnessed great progress in our understanding of the PSC niche in cardiovascular biology. PSC based therapy could
lead to successful cardiac regeneration or repair. Realizing the potential of therapeutic strategies is based on 1)
differentiation of the PSC into all of the cellular constituents of the heart; 2) release of paracrine/autocrine factors from the
PSC; 3) fusion of the PSC with the existing constituents of the heart, and 4) stimulation of endogenous repair (regeneration
of PSC niches). Importantly, cardiac PSC niches contain supporting cells and these cell–cell interactions have crucial
regulatory roles in PSC based therapy. These findings have important implications for heart development, bioengineering,
and furthermore elucidate a broader dimension of PSC control within the niche toward cardiomyocyte phenotype.
(AJCD1111004).
Keywords: Stem/progenitor cell, myocardial infarction, SDF-1α/CXCR4 axis, growth factors, progenitor/stem cell niches
Full Text PDF
Address all correspondence to:
Yigang Wang, MD, PhD
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
231 Albert Sabin Way
Cincinnati, OH 45267-0529
Phone: (513) 558-5798
FAX: (513) 558-0807
E-mail: yi-gang.wang @uc.edu
Review Article
Recent concepts for the roles of progenitor/stem cell niche in heart repair
Yuliang Feng, Xi-Yong Yu, Yigang Wang
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio 45267,
USA; Medical Research Center of Guangdong General Hospital, Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences, Guangdong
Provincial Cardiovascular Institute, Southern Medical University, 96 Dongchuan Road, Guangzhou 510080, China.
Received November 30, 2011; accepted December 10, 2011; Epub December 15, 2011; Published January 1, 2012
Abstract: Progenitor/stem cell (PSC) has shown great promise for generation in failing heart. Advances in PSC biology
have greatly enhanced our understanding of how PSC self-renewal, migration, maintenance of stemness, and cell-fate
commitment depend on the balance of complex signals in their microenvironment. Endogenous PSC existing within
structural and functional units known as PSC niches, which play important roles in directing PSC behavior. Recent years
have witnessed great progress in our understanding of the PSC niche in cardiovascular biology. PSC based therapy could
lead to successful cardiac regeneration or repair. Realizing the potential of therapeutic strategies is based on 1)
differentiation of the PSC into all of the cellular constituents of the heart; 2) release of paracrine/autocrine factors from the
PSC; 3) fusion of the PSC with the existing constituents of the heart, and 4) stimulation of endogenous repair (regeneration
of PSC niches). Importantly, cardiac PSC niches contain supporting cells and these cell–cell interactions have crucial
regulatory roles in PSC based therapy. These findings have important implications for heart development, bioengineering,
and furthermore elucidate a broader dimension of PSC control within the niche toward cardiomyocyte phenotype.
(AJCD1111004).
Keywords: Stem/progenitor cell, myocardial infarction, SDF-1α/CXCR4 axis, growth factors, progenitor/stem cell niches
Full Text PDF
Address all correspondence to:
Yigang Wang, MD, PhD
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
University of Cincinnati Medical Center
231 Albert Sabin Way
Cincinnati, OH 45267-0529
Phone: (513) 558-5798
FAX: (513) 558-0807
E-mail: yi-gang.wang @uc.edu
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