Tiam Mana Saffari

239 GENERAL DISCUSSION 11 Figure 1. Hypothetical mechanisms that drive fibrocyte and endothelial cell activation towards myofibroblasts. Activated myofibroblasts are important media- tors of wound healing. During tissue injury, fibroblasts can differentiate into myofibroblasts. This process is mainly driven by hypoxia and could be decreased by angiogenesis. In specific conditions, myofibroblasts can also arise from endothelial cells via endothelial to mesenchymal transition (EndoMT). Myofibroblasts can follow several different cell fates and can participate in tissue remodeling beyond repair, leading to scar formation. Scar formation, or fibrosis, is characterized by excessive extracellular matrix (ECM) synthesis, collagen deposition and contraction.