Open AccessHeart regeneration: Past, present and future
Author(s) -
Adriana Bastos Carvalho
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
world journal of cardiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1949-8462
DOI - 10.4330/wjc.v2.i5.107
Subject(s) - medicine , regeneration (biology) , regenerative medicine , intensive care medicine , neuroscience , bioinformatics , stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , biology
The heart has been considered a post-mitotic organ without regenerative capacity for most of the last century. We review the evidence that led to this hypothesis in the early 1900s and how it was progressively modified, culminating with the report that we renew 50% of our cardiomyocytes during our lifetime. The future of cardiac regenerative therapies is discussed, presenting the difficulties to overcome before repair of the diseased heart can come into clinical practice.