Dual Publications in Circulation!

Happy New Year! We're thrilled to kick off the year with exciting updates from the Martin Lab. Our teams at Baylor College of Medicine and the Texas Heart Institute have been hard at work, and their dedication has resulted in two high-profile publications featured in the January 7, 2025, issue of Circulation. A key focus of our research is understanding how the heart growth regulator YAP influences cardiac repair following myocardial infarction (MI), a critical step toward advancing regenerative therapies for heart disease.

YAP Acetylation Study

Dr Shijie Liu, a former postdoc in the lab and current faculty at CCHMC, led the study “Microtubules sequester acetylated YAP in the cytoplasm and inhibit heart regeneration“. In this work, we found that acetylation of YAP sequesters it outside of the nucleus to limit heart regeneration. When YAP acetylation is blocked, YAP moves into the nucleus, promoting cardiomyocyte proliferation and improved heart function. We also discovered that CBP/p300 increases YAP acetylation after MI, linking this process to the heart’s repair mechanisms.

YAP and Mitotic Rounding Study

Our other study, ”YAP overcomes mechanical barriers to induce mitotic rounding and adult cardiomyocyte division”, led by Yuka Morikawa in our Texas Heart Institute group, showed that YAP promotes cardiomyocyte cell cycle reentry, overcoming structural and molecular challenges that normally keep them post-mitotic. Given the impact of our work, these papers were featured in an editorial authored by Drs. Velayutham and Lee at Harvard University in the same issue of Circulation.

Our findings highlight YAP’s important role in coordinating heart-repair signals, revealing that it could be a powerful target for new MI and heart failure treatments. However, careful control of YAP’s activity will be essential to ensure safety and effectiveness in future therapies for heart failure. Check back on our blog to hear updates on this exciting and important work!