Regulated Cell Death Pathways in Pathological Cardiac Hypertrophy

Abstract

Cardiac hypertrophy is characterized by an increased volume of individual cardiomyocytes rather than an increase in their number. Myocardial hypertrophy due to pathological stimuli encountered by the heart, which reduces pressure on the ventricular walls to maintain cardiac function, is known as pathological hypertrophy. This eventually progresses to heart failure. Certain varieties of regulated cell death (RCD) pathways, including apoptosis, pyroptosis, ferroptosis, necroptosis, and autophagy, are crucial in the development of pathological cardiac hypertrophy. This review summarizes the molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways underlying these RCD pathways, focusing on their mechanism of action findings for pathological cardiac hypertrophy. It intends to provide new ideas for developing therapeutic approaches targeted at the cellular level to prevent or reverse pathological cardiac hypertrophy.

Keywords

• regulated cell death
• cardiac hypertrophy
• pyroptosis
• autophagy
• ferroptosis