Tag Archives: cardiomyocytes

Heart muscle can regenerate itself in very limited amounts, scientists find

UCLA researchers are first to directly measure division of cardiomyocytes

Researchers from UCLA’s Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research are the first to directly measure the division of heart muscle cells, proving that while such division is very rare, it does occur.

The study, conducted by assistant professor of cardiology Dr. Reza Ardehali and colleagues, resolves a recent controversy over whether the heart muscle has the power to regenerate itself. The findings are also important for future research that could lead to the regeneration of heart tissue to repair damage caused by disease or heart attack. (more…)

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Study: Heart Damage after Chemo Linked to Stress in Cardiac Cells

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Blocking a protein in the heart that is produced under stressful conditions could be a strategy to prevent cardiac damage that results from chemotherapy, a new study suggests.

Previous research has suggested that up to a quarter of patients who receive the common chemotherapy drug doxorubicin are at risk of developing heart failure later in life. Exactly how that heart damage is done remains unclear.

In this study, scientists identified a protein called heat shock factor-1 (HSF-1) as a likely source of chemotherapy-related heart damage in mice and cell cultures. Heat shock factor-1 is known to be induced by stress – in this case, the chemotherapy treatment itself. (more…)

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