Skip Navigation

Cardiovascular Research 2002 55(1):38-52; doi:10.1016/S0008-6363(02)00338-3
© 2002 by European Society of Cardiology
This Article
Right arrow Full Text Freely available
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF) Freely available
Right arrow E-letters: Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when E-letters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Right arrow Disclaimer
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Rücker-Martin, C.
Right arrow Articles by Hatem, S. N
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Rücker-Martin, C.
Right arrow Articles by Hatem, S. N
Social Bookmarking
 Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Copyright © 2002, European Society of Cardiology

Dedifferentiation of atrial myocytes during atrial fibrillation: role of fibroblast proliferation in vitro

Catherine Rücker-Martina,*, Françoise Peckerb, David Godreauc and Stéphane N Hatemc

aCNRS ESA 8078, Physiologie Cardiovasculaire et Thymique, Hôpital Marie Lannelongue, 133 avenue de la Résistance, 92350 Le Plessis Robinson, France
bINSERM Unité 99, Hôpital Henri Mondor, 94010 Créteil, France
cINSERM Unité 460 and Service de Chirurgie Cardiaque, Hôpital and Faculté de Médecine Xavier Bichat, 75018 Paris, France

francoise.pecker{at}im3.inserm.fr

hatem{at}bichat.inserm.fr

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +33-1-4631-5611; fax: +33-1-4630-4564 catherine.rucker{at}ccml.u-psud.fr

Objectives: Severe myocyte alterations, characterized by enlarged myocytes and myolysis, is observed in fibrillating and dilated atria and contributes to atrial fibrillation. The aim of this study was to determine the nature of this cellular remodeling process and factors involved in its regulation. Methods: In vivo, contractile proteins were studied in 24 human right atrial specimens by means of immunohistochemical techniques. In an attempt to reproduce in vitro the myocyte remodeling and to study its regulation, human atrial myocytes were cultured (n = 27) and analyzed immunocytochemically; intracellular Ca2+ transients (Cai-tr) in response to electrical stimulation were monitored using Fura-2/AM. Results: In diseased specimens, sarcomeres, seen at the periphery of myolytic myocytes, stained positively with antibodies against sarcomeric proteins of the Z-band ({alpha}-actinin and titin epitope T12) but not with antibodies against titin epitope T11 (I-band) or desmin (intermediate filament). β-myosin heavy chain (MHC) and smooth muscle {alpha}-actin, two proteins of the fetal program, were re-expressed. In culture, diseased myocytes also showed myolysis and glycogen accumulation; their sarcomeres stained positively with anti-{alpha}-actinin, anti-T12, anti-β-MHC and anti-smooth muscle {alpha}-actin but not with anti-titin T11 or anti-desmin antibodies. At confluence, myocytes regained a normal sarcomeric apparatus and were excitable, as shown by electrical Cai-tr triggering. This redifferentiation process was inhibited by fibroblast proliferation. Conclusion: In diseased atria, myolytic myocytes are in a dedifferentiated state resembling that of immature muscle cells. In vitro, fibroblast proliferation prevents the reversibility of this cellular alteration.

KEYWORDS Arrhythmia (mechanisms); Atrial function; Fibrosis; Histo(patho)logy; Myocytes; Remodeling


Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
Cardiovasc ResHome page
A. Darmellah, C. Rucker-Martin, and D. Feuvray
ERM proteins mediate the effects of Na+/H+ exchanger (NHE1) activation in cardiac myocytes
Cardiovasc Res, February 1, 2009; 81(2): 294 - 300.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
J Am Coll CardiolHome page
B. Burstein and S. Nattel
Atrial Fibrosis: Mechanisms and Clinical Relevance in Atrial Fibrillation
J. Am. Coll. Cardiol., February 26, 2008; 51(8): 802 - 809.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Cardiovasc ResHome page
B. Burstein, X.-Y. Qi, Y.-H. Yeh, A. Calderone, and S. Nattel
Atrial cardiomyocyte tachycardia alters cardiac fibroblast function: A novel consideration in atrial remodeling
Cardiovasc Res, December 1, 2007; 76(3): 442 - 452.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Cardiovasc ResHome page
C. Rucker-Martin, P. Milliez, S. Tan, X. Decrouy, M. Recouvreur, R. Vranckx, C. Delcayre, J.-F. Renaud, I. Dunia, D. Segretain, et al.
Chronic hemodynamic overload of the atria is an important factor for gap junction remodeling in human and rat hearts
Cardiovasc Res, October 1, 2006; 72(1): 69 - 79.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Cardiovasc ResHome page
C. Ancey, E. Menet, P. Corbi, S. Fredj, M. Garcia, C. Rucker-Martin, J. Bescond, F. Morel, J. Wijdenes, J.-C. Lecron, et al.
Human cardiomyocyte hypertrophy induced in vitro by gp130 stimulation
Cardiovasc Res, July 1, 2003; 59(1): 78 - 85.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


Home page
Cardiovasc ResHome page
J. Ausma and M. Borgers
Dedifferentiation of atrial cardiomyocytes: from in vivo to in vitro
Cardiovasc Res, July 1, 2002; 55(1): 9 - 12.
[Full Text] [PDF]



Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.