Direct Reprogramming for Cardiac Regeneration

D irect reprogramming of endogenous fibroblasts into functional cardiomyocytes to regenerate the heart after myocardial infarction (MI) has long been a dream.A few years ago, this would have been considered by most to be science fiction.Certainly, the most optimistic scientists would probably categorize this as "highly unlikely to ever work."And yet, 2 papers, 1,2 including one in this issue of Circulation Research, 2 have achieved this, using two distinct approaches.These landmark studies will hopefully pave the way for effective approaches to restoring cardiac function after cardiac injury.