Role of Macrophages in Cardioprotection

• Published in: International journal of molecular sciences Vol. 20; no. 10; p. 2474
• Main Authors: Yap, Jonathan, Cabrera-Fuentes, Hector A., Irei, Jason, Hausenloy, Derek J., Boisvert, William A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 19.05.2019; MDPI
• Subjects: Animals; Atherosclerosis; Blood clots; Cardiovascular disease; Cardiovascular Diseases - immunology; Cardiovascular Diseases - pathology; Cardiovascular Diseases - physiopathology; Cardiovascular Diseases - therapy; Cell growth; Chemokines; Cytokines; Embolisms; Enzymes; Genotype & phenotype; Growth factors; Heart - physiopathology; Heart attacks; Humans; Immune response; Immunity, Innate; Inflammation; Ischemia; Lipids; Macrophages - immunology; Macrophages - pathology; Myocardial Infarction - immunology; Myocardial Infarction - pathology; Myocardial Infarction - physiopathology; Myocardial Infarction - therapy; Myocardium - cytology; Myocardium - immunology; Myocardium - pathology; Pathogens; Protective Factors; Review; Smooth muscle; Stroke; Ventricular Remodeling; Wound healing; cardioprotection; macrophages; remodeling; cardiac repair; innate immune response; myocardial infarction
• ISSN: 1422-0067; 1661-6596; 1422-0067
• DOI: 10.3390/ijms20102474

Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of mortality worldwide. It is widely known that non-resolving inflammation results in atherosclerotic conditions, which are responsible for a host of downstream pathologies including thrombosis, myocardial infarction (MI), and neurovascular events. Macrophages, as part of the innate immune response, are among the most important cell types in every stage of atherosclerosis. In this review we discuss the principles governing macrophage function in the healthy and infarcted heart. More specifically, how cardiac macrophages participate in myocardial infarction as well as cardiac repair and remodeling. The intricate balance between phenotypically heterogeneous populations of macrophages in the heart have profound and highly orchestrated effects during different phases of myocardial infarction. In the early “inflammatory” stage of MI, resident cardiac macrophages are replaced by classically activated macrophages derived from the bone marrow and spleen. And while the macrophage population shifts towards an alternatively activated phenotype, the inflammatory response subsides giving way to the “reparative/proliferative” phase. Lastly, we describe the therapeutic potential of cardiac macrophages in the context of cell-mediated cardio-protection. Promising results demonstrate innovative concepts; one employing a subset of yolk sac-derived, cardiac macrophages that have complete restorative capacity in the injured myocardium of neonatal mice, and in another example, post-conditioning of cardiac macrophages with cardiosphere-derived cells significantly improved patient’s post-MI diagnoses.