Cardiac Fibro-Adipocyte Progenitors Express Desmosome Proteins and Preferentially Differentiate to Adipocytes Upon Deletion of the Desmoplakin Gene

Abstract

A subset of cardiac FAPs, identified by the PDGFRA(pos):Lin(neg):THY1(neg):DDR2(neg) signature, expresses desmosome proteins and differentiates to adipocytes in AC through a Wnt-dependent mechanism. The findings expand the cellular spectrum of AC, commonly recognized as a disease of cardiac myocytes, to include nonmyocyte cells in the heart.