Publications by authors named "Rich Li"
Article Synopsis
- - The study focuses on understanding how adult heart cells (cardiomyocytes) remain in a state of cell cycle arrest and how the YAP5SA protein can help them re-enter the cell cycle, offering insights into their growth and division.
- - Researchers used various methods, including clonal analyses and single-cell RNA sequencing, to examine the characteristics and behaviors of cardiomyocytes influenced by YAP5SA.
- - Findings indicate that while YAP5SA cardiomyocytes can efficiently divide after exiting the cycle, there are barriers, like the checkpoint activity from P21, that hinder their progression through the cycle, suggesting new ways to understand and potentially manipulate cardiac cell division.
Background: The Hippo pathway effector YAP (Yes-associated protein) plays an essential role in cardiomyocyte proliferation and heart regeneration. In response to physiological changes, YAP moves in and out of the nucleus. The pathophysiological mechanisms regulating YAP subcellular localization after myocardial infarction remain poorly defined.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFCardiac fibrosis, a common pathophysiology associated with various heart diseases, occurs from the excess deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) . Cardiac fibroblasts (CFs) are the primary cells that produce, degrade, and remodel ECM during homeostasis and tissue repair . Upon injury, CFs gain plasticity to differentiate into myofibroblasts and adipocyte-like and osteoblast-like cells, promoting fibrosis and impairing heart function .
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAfter myocardial infarction (MI), mammalian hearts do not regenerate, and the microenvironment is disrupted. Hippo signaling loss of function with activation of transcriptional co-factor YAP induces heart renewal and rebuilds the post-MI microenvironment. In this study, we investigated adult renewal-competent mouse hearts expressing an active version of YAP, called YAP5SA, in cardiomyocytes (CMs).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Much of our knowledge of organ rejection after transplantation is derived from rodent models.
Methods: We used single-nucleus RNA sequencing to investigate the inflammatory myocardial microenvironment in human pediatric cardiac allografts at different stages after transplantation. We distinguished donor- from recipient-derived cells using naturally occurring genetic variants embedded in single-nucleus RNA sequencing data.
Homology Directed Repair (HDR)-based genome editing is an approach that could permanently correct a broad range of genetic diseases. However, its utility is limited by inefficient and imprecise DNA repair mechanisms in terminally differentiated tissues. Here, we tested "Repair Drive", a novel method for improving targeted gene insertion in the liver by selectively expanding correctly repaired hepatocytes .
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: The sinoatrial node (SAN) functions as the pacemaker of the heart, initiating rhythmic heartbeats. Despite its importance, the SAN is one of the most poorly understood cardiac entities because of its small size and complex composition and function. The Hippo signaling pathway is a molecular signaling pathway fundamental to heart development and regeneration.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Cardiomyocytes are specialized heart muscle cells that have a limited ability to regenerate, leading to challenges in recovering from heart disease and injury.
- Recent research suggests that stimulating the proliferation of existing cardiomyocytes is vital for heart renewal, particularly by inhibiting the Hippo signaling pathway.
- This review explores how the Hippo pathway influences heart regeneration through both cell-specific and broader cellular interactions, and highlights successful studies in larger animal models that support targeting this pathway as a potential treatment for heart disease.