The cardiac fibroblasts (CF) are the principal cell type of the heart. They provide structural support for cardiac myocytes, are a source of paracrine growth factors, and are an important cellular component of myocardial responses to injury. CF are responsible for extracellular matrix synthesis in the heart during development and pathological conditions. Their proliferation and matrix synthesis is essential for scar formation at sites of myocardial infarction [1], cardiac fibrosis, and is often complicated by cardiac hypertrophy [2]. CF also respond to changes in microenvironments in pathological conditions by modulating integrin expression [3]. CF culture has been widely used as a model to study the cardiac matrix remodeling by physiological (exercise) and pathological (hypertension) stressors.

MCF from ScienCell Research Laboratories are isolated from postnatal day 2 C57BL/6 mouse heart. MCF are cryopreserved at P0 and delivered frozen. Each vial contains >5 x 10^5 cells in 1 ml volume. MCF are characterized by immunofluorescence with antibody specific to fibronectin. MCF are negative for mycoplasma, bacteria, yeast, and fungi. MCF are guaranteed to further expand for 5 population doublings under the conditions provided by ScienCell Research Laboratories.

Recommended Medium

It is recommended to use Fibroblast Medium-2 (FM-2, Cat. #2331) for culturing MCF in vitro.