Endothelial Contributions to Zebrafish Heart Regeneration
1
Department of Medicine, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
2
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27708, USA
3
Regeneration Next, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
J. Cardiovasc. Dev. Dis. 2018, 5(4), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/jcdd5040056
Received: 31 October 2018 / Revised: 29 November 2018 / Accepted: 9 December 2018 / Published: 11 December 2018
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cardiac Regeneration in Non-Mammalian Vertebrates)
Studies over the past two decades have shown heart regeneration in zebrafish to be a dynamic process, choreographed by multiple cell types. In particular, recent work has identified revascularization of the wound to be a sentinel event during heart regeneration. The cardiac endothelium has emerged as a key orchestrator of heart regeneration, influencing cardiomyocyte hyperplasia and tissue morphogenesis. Here, we review how the coronary vasculature regenerates after injury, how signaling pathways link the cardiac endothelium to heart regeneration, and how understanding these signaling dynamics can lead to targeted therapies for heart regeneration.
Keywords:
cardiac regeneration; vascular; endothelium