Role of Circulating Fibrocytes in Cardiac Fibrosis

OBJECTIVE: It is revealed that circulating fibrocytes are elevated in patients/animals with cardiac fibrosis, and this review aims to provide an introduction to circulating fibrocytes and their role in cardiac fibrosis. DATA SOURCES: This review is based on the data from 1994 to present obtained from PubMed. The search terms were “circulating fibrocytes” and “cardiac fibrosis”. STUDY SELECTION: Articles and critical reviews, which are related to circulating fibrocytes and cardiac fibrosis, were selected. RESULTS: Circulating fibrocytes, which are derived from hematopoietic stem cells, represent a subset of peripheral blood mononuclear cells exhibiting mixed morphological and molecular characteristics of hematopoietic and mesenchymal cells (CD34(+)/CD45(+)/collagen I(+)). They can produce extracellular matrix and many cytokines. It is shown that circulating fibrocytes participate in many fibrotic diseases, including cardiac fibrosis. Evidence accumulated in recent years shows that aging individuals and patients with hypertension, heart failure, coronary heart disease, and atrial fibrillation have more circulating fibrocytes in peripheral blood and/or heart tissue, and this elevation of circulating fibrocytes is correlated with the degree of fibrosis in the hearts. CONCLUSIONS: Circulating fibrocytes are effector cells in cardiac fibrosis.