International Journal of Molecular Sciences Review Induced Cardiomyocyte Proliferation: A Promising Approach to Cure Heart Failure Abou Bakr M. Salama 1,2,3 , Ahmad Gebreil 1, Tamer M. A. Mohamed 1,4,5,6,7 and Riham R. E. Abouleisa 1,* 1 Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Institute of Molecular Cardiology, University of Louisville, 580 S. Preston St., Rm 122, Louisville, KY 40202, USA;
[email protected] (A.B.M.S.);
[email protected] (A.G.);
[email protected] (T.M.A.M.) 2 Department of Cardiovascular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt 3 Department of Cardiac Surgery, Verona University, 37134 Verona, Italy 4 Diabetes and Obesity Center, Department of Medicine, Division of Environmental Medicine, Christina Lee Brown Envirome Institute, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, USA 5 Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Louisville, Louisville, KY 40202, USA 6 Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PL, UK 7 Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Zagazig University, Zagazig 44519, Egypt * Correspondence:
[email protected]; Tel.: +1-415-852-8428 Abstract: Unlike some lower vertebrates which can completely regenerate their heart, the human heart is a terminally differentiated organ. Cardiomyocytes lost during cardiac injury and heart failure cannot be replaced due to their limited proliferative capacity. Therefore, cardiac injury generally leads to progressive failure. Here, we summarize the latest progress in research on methods to induce cardiomyocyte cell cycle entry and heart repair through the alteration of cardiomyocyte plasticity, which is emerging as an effective strategy to compensate for the loss of functional cardiomyocytes and improve the impaired heart functions.