Pathogenic Mechanisms of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy beyond Sarcomere Dysfunction

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common inherited cardiovascular disorder, affecting 1 in 500 people in the general population. Although characterized by asymmetric left ventricular hypertrophy, cardiomyocyte disarray, and cardiac fibrosis, HCM is in fact a highly complex disease with h...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Chun Chou, Michael T. Chin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-08-01
Series:International Journal of Molecular Sciences
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/16/8933
Description
Summary:Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common inherited cardiovascular disorder, affecting 1 in 500 people in the general population. Although characterized by asymmetric left ventricular hypertrophy, cardiomyocyte disarray, and cardiac fibrosis, HCM is in fact a highly complex disease with heterogenous clinical presentation, onset, and complications. While HCM is generally accepted as a disease of the sarcomere, variable penetrance in families with identical genetic mutations challenges the monogenic origin of HCM and instead implies a multifactorial cause. Furthermore, large-scale genome sequencing studies revealed that many genes previously reported as causative of HCM in fact have little or no evidence of disease association. These findings thus call for a re-evaluation of the sarcomere-centered view of HCM pathogenesis. Here, we summarize our current understanding of sarcomere-independent mechanisms of cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, highlight the role of extracellular signals in cardiac fibrosis, and propose an alternative but integrated model of HCM pathogenesis.
ISSN:1661-6596
1422-0067