Abstract
Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) involves genotypic and phenotypic changes leading to the conversion of polarized epithelial cells into motile mesenchymal cells. This process occurs typically in mesothelial cells of developing cardiac tissue, but recent discoveries indicate the preservation or reactivation of embryonic potential of epicardial cells in the adult heart. Moreover, cells with cardiac stem cell phenotype and properties have been identified among epicardially derived cell (EPDC) population, indicating EMT and EPDCs as yet another source of cells for adult cardiac tissue regeneration in cardiovascular diseases. Understanding how and when EPDCs arise from epicardial cells by EMT in the adult human heart could have a strong impact in clarifying the mechanisms of cardiac tissue self-renewal and regeneration. The chapter includes a protocol for adult human epicardial cell culture and EMT induction leading to a formation of cardiac progenitor cells in vitro.
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