Author Correction: Toll-like receptor 9 protects non-immune cells from stress by modulating mitochondrial ATP synthesis through the inhibition of SERCA2.

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Adult cardiac stem cells are multipotent and robustly myogenic: c-kit expression is necessary but not sufficient for their identification.

Multipotent adult resident cardiac stem cells (CSCs) were first identified by the expression of c-kit, the stem cell factor receptor. However, in the adult myocardium c-kit alone cannot distinguish CSCs from other c-kit-expressing (c-kit) cells. The adult heart indeed contains a heterogeneous mixture of c-kit cells, mainly composed of mast and endothelial/progenitor cells.

Identification of cell-specific soluble mediators and cellular targets during cell therapy for the treatment of heart failure.

Cell therapy, the transplantation of progenitor cells into the myocardium, has been proposed as a possible treatment strategy for heart failure. Despite the lack of repopulation of the heart with progenitor cells, cell therapy induces a modest but well-documented functional improvement in patients. It is thought that paracrine mechanisms may account for the observed changes in heart function.