Novel therapy for myocardial infarction: can HGF/Met be beneficial?

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of hospitalization worldwide. A recently developed strategy to improve the management of MI is based on the use of growth factors, which are able to enhance the intrinsic capacity of the heart to repair or regenerate after damage. Among others, the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been proposed as a modulator of cardiac repair to damage, due to the pleiotropic effects elicited by Met receptor stimulation. In this review we describe the mechanistic basis for autocrine and paracrine protection of HGF in the injured heart. Next, we analyze the role of HGF/Met in stem cell maintenance and in stem cell therapies for MI. Finally, we summarize the most significant results on the use of HGF in experimental models of heart injury and discuss the potential of the molecule for treating ischemic heart disease in man.