Key result
Cardiac telocytes form distinct 3D interstitial networks that may drive myocardial regeneration.
Why the study?
Recent discoveries of cardiac telocytes and their role in myocardium regeneration have prompted a comprehensive summary of their morphology and function.
This review highlights the morphological and functional characteristics of cardiac telocytes and their potential applications in regenerative medicine and cardiology.
Hypothesis-generating for telocyte-mediated cardiac connectivity; functional validation required before any clinical consideration.
Key morphological discoveries in recent years have included the discovery of new cell populations inside the heart called cardiac telocytes. These newly described cells of the connective tissue have extremely long cytoplasmic processes through which they form functionally connected three-dimensional networks that connect cells of the immune system, nerve fibers, cardiac stem cells, and cardiac muscle cells. Based on their functions, telocytes are also referred to as "connecting cells" or "nurse cells" for cardiac progenitor stem cells. In this critical review, we provide a summary of the latest research on cardiac telocytes localized in all layers of the heart - from the historical background of their discovery, through ultrastructural, immunohistochemical, and functional characterizations, to the application of this knowledge to the fields of cardiology, stem cell research, and regenerative medicine.
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Varga et al. (2016) conducted a review in Myocardium regeneration. Cardiac telocytes was evaluated. Cardiac telocytes are a distinct population of interstitial cells with extremely long cytoplasmic processes that form 3D networks, potentially playing a crucial role in myocardium regeneration.
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