Adaptations of cytoarchitecture in human dilated cardiomyopathy |
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Authors: | Marlene Pluess Gregor Daeubler Cristobal G dos Remedios Elisabeth Ehler |
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Institution: | 1.Randall Division of Cell and Molecular Biophysics and Cardiovascular Division, British Heart Foundation Centre of Research Excellence, King’s College London, New Hunt’s House, Guy’s Campus, London, SE1 1UL UK ;2.Bosch Institute, Department of Anatomy, University of Sydney, Sydney, 2006 Australia |
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Abstract: | Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is characterised by a histological phenotype of myocyte disarray, but heart tissue samples from patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) often look comparatively similar to those from healthy individuals apart from conspicuous regions of fibrosis and necrosis. We have previously investigated subcellular alterations in the cytoarchitecture of mouse models of dilated cardiomyopathy and found that both the organisation and composition of the intercalated disc, i.e. the specialised type of cell–cell contact in the heart, is altered. There is also is a change in the composition of the M-band of the sarcomere due to an expression shift towards the more extensible embryonic heart (EH)-myomesin isoform. Analysis of human samples from the Sydney Human Heart Tissue Bank have revealed similar structural findings and also provided evidence for a dramatic change in overall cardiomyocyte size control, which has also been seen in the mouse. Together these changes in cytoarchitecture probably contribute to the decreased functional output that is seen in DCM. |
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Keywords: | Cytoskeleton Intercalated disc Dilated cardiomyopathy Formin M-band |
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