Diversity of Cells and Signals in the Cardiovascular System.

This white paper is the outcome of the seventh UC Davis Cardiovascular Research Symposium on Systems Approach to Understanding Cardiovascular Disease and Arrhythmia. This biannual meeting aims to bring together leading experts in subfields of cardiovascular biomedicine to focus on topics of importance to the field. The theme of the 2022 symposium was "Cell Diversity in the Cardiovascular System, cell-autonomous and cell-cell signaling". Experts in the field contributed their experimental and mathematical modelling perspectives and discussed emerging questions, controversies, and challenges in examining cell and signal diversity, coordination, and interrelationships involved in cardiovascular function. This paper originates from the topics of formal presentations and informal discussions from the symposium, which aimed to develop a holistic view of how the multiple cell types in the cardiovascular system integrate to influence cardiovascular function, disease progression, and therapeutic strategies. The first section describes the major cell types (e.g., cardiomyocytes, vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cells, fibroblasts, neurons, immune cells, etc.) and the signals involved in cardiovascular function. The second section emphasizes the complexity at the subcellular, cellular, and system levels in the context of cardiovascular development, aging, and disease. Finally, the third section surveys the technological innovation that allows interrogating this diversity and advancing our understanding of the integrated cardiovascular function and dysfunction. Abstract figure legend The white paper discusses the cell diversity, coordination, and interaction patterns that are critical for robust cardiovascular function. We identify the major cell types and signals involved in cardiovascular function and emphasize the complexity at the subcellular, cellular, and system levels that motivate both challenges and opportunities for researchers. A survey of recent advances enabled by innovative experimental and computational modeling approaches serve to guide researchers moving forward. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.