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. 2007 May 1;5(2):143–152. doi: 10.1111/j.1582-4934.2001.tb00147.x

Cardiac apoptosis: from organ failure to allograft rejection

M E Hinescu 1,✉
PMCID: PMC6517813  PMID: 12067497

Abstract

Cardiac myocyte apoptosis has been extensively studied in the last few years. Increased interest in the field stems from the hope that pharmacological manipulation of apoptosis may become a valuable tool for preventing excessive cell death observed in different pathological conditions. This paper is not intended as a comprehensive overview of current research about life and death in the cardiovascular system, but rather as a concise update on new developments in areas that were highlighted in a recent series of excellent reviews. A short inventory of unsolved issues concerning the significance of cardiac myocyte loss through apoptosis in both physiological and pathological circumstances is addressed.

Keywords: apoptosis, myocytes, ischemia, heart failure, heart transplantation

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