Extracellular Matrix Remodeling and Chronic Congestive Heart Failure

The myocardial extracellular matrix was thought to serve solely as a means to align cells and provide structure to the tissue. Although this is an important function of the extracellular matrix, emerging evidence suggests that the extracellular matrix plays a complex and divergent role in influencing cell behavior. For example, the extracellular matrix plays a functional role in cell migration, proliferation, adhesion, and cell-to-cell signaling. In light of this,myocardial extracellular matrix is not regarded as merely a static structure but rather as a complex system of dynamic interactions between matrix molecules, signaling proteins, resident cells, and transmembrane proteins. Extracellular matrix remodeling may be maladaptive and contribute to progressive myocardiac remodeling and heart failure.