Plasticity of newt Cardiomyocytes

The mammalian heart is not able to regenerate lost cardiac tissue after substantial injuries, instead the heart is repaired by scar formation. Newts and Zebrafish however are able to fully regenerate their hearts without scarring. On of the current projects at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research is to understand, how cardiac regeneration takes place in non-mammalian vertebrates. This could provide new approaches that stimulate regenerative pathways in the human heart.