The application of next-generation sequencing to study congenital heart disease (CHD) is
increasingly providing new insights into the causes and mechanisms of this prevalent birth …

Fibrotic diseases are characterized by net accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins in
affected organs leading to their dysfunction and ultimate failure. Myofibroblasts have been …

The vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), a homodimeric vasoactive glycoprotein, is
the key mediator of angiogenesis. Angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels, is …

The NFAT family of transcription factors encompasses five proteins evolutionarily related to
the Rel/NFκB family (Chytil and Verdine 1996; Graef et al. 2001b). The primordial family …

Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) converts epithelial cells to mobile and
developmentally plastic mesenchymal cells. All cells in the heart arise from one or more …

Hypoxia inducible factor (HIF) is a transcription factor that acts in low-oxygen conditions. The
cellular response to HIF activation is transcriptional upregulation of a large group of genes …

The crosstalk between endothelial cells and cardiomyocytes has emerged as a requisite for
normal cardiac development, but also a key pathogenic player during the onset and …

In recent years, significant advances have been made in the definition of regulatory
pathways that control normal and abnormal cardiac valve development. Here, we review the …

Despite enormous advances, cardiovascular disorders are still a major threat to global
health and are responsible for one-third of deaths worldwide. Research for new therapeutics …

During the past decade, single gene disruption in mice and large-scale mutagenesis
screens in zebrafish have elucidated many fundamental genetic pathways that govern early …