Oxygen Burst Triggers Heart Cell Differentiation

These findings were published in the September 2, 2003, online edition of the Journal of Cell Biology.

Investigators at Ohio State University (Columbus, USA) used GeneChip technology to characterize the genomic response to perceived hyperoxia in cardiac fibroblasts. Candidate genes were identified, confirmed, and clustered. The sudden exposure to oxygen activated the oxygen-sensitive genes in cardiac fibroblasts, and the products of these genes caused the cells to differentiate into myofibroblasts.

"Myofibroblasts go to work after you cut yourself,” explained senior author Dr. Chandan Sen, associate director of the Dorothy M. Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute at Ohio State University. "They have muscle-like properties and try to contract and close a wound. These are robust cells. They remain at the damaged site even when all of the heart muscle cells have died. It is important to appreciate that the heart has a built-in, healing component.”




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