TRANSDIFFERENTIATION OF CARDIAC FIBROBLASTS TO MYOFIBROBLAST PHENOTYPE AND ITS REGULATION BY EXTRACELLULAR MATRIX COMPOSITION AND MECHANICS

The myocardium is a complex composite in which cardiomyocytes make up the bulk of the volume and fibroblasts are the most abundant cell type. Fibroblasts are known to transdifferentiate into the myofibroblast phenotype associated with cardiac fibrosis/remodeling, and are involved in disease entities