Changing Macrophage Behavior to Improve Regeneration Following Heart Attack

The innate immune cells known as macrophages play an important role in the coordination of regeneration, in addition to their tasks related to defense against pathogens and clearance of debris and molecular waste. Macrophages adopt different polarizations, or collections of behaviors, under different circumstances. Researchers are very interested in finding ways to force macrophages to adopt a desired polarization, such as to switch inflammatory, aggressive macrophages into a kinder, gentler pro-regeneration state. The research noted here is an example of those efforts, in that the scientists involved are attempting to make macrophages participate more readily in the regrowth of blood vessels following damage to the heart, such as that produced by a heart attack. Despite the advent of new therapeutic strategies to restore blood flow, we are not yet able to prevent the onset of heart failure following myocardial infarction (MI). Hence, it is a major challenge to identify innovative strategies to restore nutrient supply to the infarcted myocardium, ultimately aimed at regeneration of myocardial functionality. The cellular response following MI is characterized by a rapid recruitment of neutrophils. Their arrival is superseded by the infiltration of classical monocytes, which contribute to clearance of debris. However, this subset also drives robust inflammation, leading to pathological remodeling. In contrast, the appearance of nonclassical monocytes and reparative mac...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs