Title:Microvasculature Recovery by Angiogenesis After Myocardial Infarction
Volume: 24
Issue: 25
Author(s): Lina Badimon and Maria Borrell*
Affiliation:
- CIBER-CV, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid,Spain
Keywords:
Angiogenesis, reperfusion therapies, microvascular dysfunction, myocardial infarction, myocardial perfusion, ischemia.
Abstract: Advances in early reperfusion therapies focused on the revascularization of the ischemic tissues, in the
last decades, lead to reduced mortality in acute myocardial infarction (MI) patients. However, a large proportion
of patients show inadequate myocardial perfusion because of dysfunction of the microcirculation. The high prevalence
of microvascular dysfunction after reperfusion therapies and the negative prognostic of this procedure justify
the search for therapeutic strategies that aim to restore the microvascular network. It is well known that the
size of the initial infarct, the duration of ischemia and the efficiency of reperfusion determine myocardial tissue
damage and cardiomyocyte loss after myocardial infarction. Therefore any advancement on the mechanisms that
induce the repair process of microvascular dysfunction after reperfused MI is of great interest. Here, we will
review the different proteins and cells known to participate in angiogenesis induction post-MI and we will also
discuss the potential pharmacological and cellular processes that promote the recovery of microvasculature by
angiogenesis stimulation after MI.