Regenerating the Epicardium of the Human Heart
February 21, 2017 | Terry Sharrer
Researchers at Penn State University have discovered that by chemically manipulating the Wnt signaling pathway of human cardiac stem cells they can, first, regenerate the muscular myocardium, and then, with further signaling, can produce the heart’s outer layer epicardium. The next steps are to manipulate formation of the inner layer endocardium and the fibrous sac pericardium for a fully functioning heart. Other scientists have accomplished this with rodent hearts. “Wnt” comes from blending “wingless” and “integration,” based on the signaling pathway of fruit flies and mice. MORE
Image Credit: Lance Lian, Penn State News