Macrophage Efferocytosis in Cardiac Pathophysiology and Repair.

Macrophage Efferocytosis in Cardiac Pathophysiology and Repair.

As an integral component of cardiac tissue, macrophages are critical for cardiac development, adult heart homeostasis, as well as cardiac healing. One fundamental function of macrophages involves the clearance of dying cells or debris, a process termed efferocytosis. Current literature primarily pays attention to the impact of efferocytosis on apoptotic cells. However, emerging evidence suggests that necrotic cells and their released cellular debris can also be removed by cardiac macrophages through efferocytosis. Importantly, recent studies have demonstrated that macrophage efferocytosis plays an essential role in cardiac pathophysiology and repair. Therefore, understanding macrophage efferocytosis would provide valuable insights on cardiac health, and may offer new therapeutic strategies for the treatment of patients with heart failure. In this review, we first summarize the molecular signals that are associated with macrophage efferocytosis of apoptotic and necrotic cells, and then discuss how the linkage of efferocytosis to the resolution of inflammation affects cardiac function and recovery under normal and diseased conditions. Lastly, we highlight new discoveries related to the effects of macrophage efferocytosis on cardiac injury and repair.

作为心脏组织的一个组成部分，巨噬细胞对心脏发育、成年心脏内稳态以及心脏修复至关重要。巨噬细胞的一个基本功能是清除濒死细胞或碎片，这一过程被称为胞葬作用。当前文献主要关注胞葬作用对凋亡细胞的影响。然而，新出现的证据表明，坏死细胞及其释放的细胞碎片也可被心脏巨噬细胞通过胞葬作用清除。重要的是，近期研究表明巨噬细胞胞葬作用在心脏病理生理学和修复中起着关键作用。因此，了解巨噬细胞胞葬作用将为心脏健康提供有价值的见解，并可能为心力衰竭患者的治疗提供新的治疗策略。在这篇综述中，我们首先总结与巨噬细胞对凋亡细胞和坏死细胞的胞葬作用相关的分子信号，然后讨论胞葬作用与炎症消退的联系在正常和疾病状态下如何影响心脏功能和恢复。最后，我们强调与巨噬细胞胞葬作用对心脏损伤和修复的影响相关的新发现。