Unlocking the Secrets of the Regenerating Fish Heart: Comparing Regenerative Models to Shed Light on Successful Regeneration.
Helen G PottsWilliam T StockdaleMathilda T M MommersteegPublished in: Journal of cardiovascular development and disease (2021)
The adult human heart cannot repair itself after injury and, instead, forms a permanent fibrotic scar that impairs cardiac function and can lead to incurable heart failure. The zebrafish, amongst other organisms, has been extensively studied for its innate capacity to repair its heart after injury. Understanding the signals that govern successful regeneration in models such as the zebrafish will lead to the development of effective therapies that can stimulate endogenous repair in humans. To date, many studies have investigated cardiac regeneration using a reverse genetics candidate gene approach. However, this approach is limited in its ability to unbiasedly identify novel genes and signalling pathways that are essential to successful regeneration. In contrast, drawing comparisons between different models of regeneration enables unbiased screens to be performed, identifying signals that have not previously been linked to regeneration. Here, we will review in detail what has been learnt from the comparative approach, highlighting the techniques used and how these studies have influenced the field. We will also discuss what further comparisons would enhance our knowledge of successful regeneration and scarring. Finally, we focus on the Astyanax mexicanus, an intraspecies comparative fish model that holds great promise for revealing the secrets of the regenerating heart.
Keyphrases
- stem cells
- heart failure
- wound healing
- atrial fibrillation
- left ventricular
- genome wide
- endothelial cells
- immune response
- dna methylation
- high resolution
- case control
- young adults
- mesenchymal stem cells
- idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis
- computed tomography
- copy number
- high speed
- multidrug resistant
- bone marrow
- contrast enhanced
- atomic force microscopy