Biomedicines (Dec 2021)

Regional Diversities in Fibrogenesis Weighed as a Key Determinant for Atrial Arrhythmogenesis

  • Cheng-Chih Chung,
  • Chye-Gen Chin,
  • Yung-Kuo Lin,
  • Yao-Chang Chen,
  • Wan-Li Cheng,
  • Yung-Hsin Yeh,
  • Yu-Hsun Kao,
  • Yi-Jen Chen

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines9121900
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 9, no. 12
p. 1900

Abstract

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Atrial fibrosis plays a key role in atrial myopathy, resulting in the genesis of atrial fibrillation (AF). The abnormal distribution of fibrotic tissue, electrical coupling, paracrine interactions, and biomechanical–electrical interactions have all been suggested as causes of fibrosis-related arrhythmogenesis. Moreover, the regional difference in fibrogenesis, specifically the left atrium (LA) exhibiting a higher arrhythmogenesis and level of fibrosis than the right atrium (RA) in AF, is a key contributor to atrial arrhythmogenesis. LA fibroblasts have greater profibrotic cellular activities than RA fibroblasts, but knowledge about the regional diversity of atrial regional fibrogenesis remains limited. This article provides a comprehensive review of research findings on the association between fibrogenesis and arrhythmogenesis from laboratory to clinical evidence and updates the current understanding of the potential mechanism underlying the difference in fibrogenesis between the LA and RA.

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