The microenvironment of decellularized extracellular matrix from heart failure myocardium alters the balance between angiogenic and fibrotic signals from stromal primitive cells
Cardiac adverse remodeling is characterized by biological changes that aect the composition and architecture of the extracellular matrix (ECM). The consequently disrupted signaling can interfere with the balance between cardiogenic and pro-fibrotic phenotype of resident cardiac stromal primitive cells (CPCs). The latter are important players in cardiac homeostasis and can be exploited as therapeutic cells in regenerative medicine. Our aim was to compare the eects of human decellularized native ECM from normal (dECM-NH) or failing hearts (dECM-PH) on human CPCs.