Systemic sclerosis-like histopathological features in the myocardium of uPAR-deficient mice

Cardiomyopathy is among the leading causes of death from systemic sclerosis (SSc). Urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR)-deficient mice have been recently reported to display important histopathological hallmarks of SSc, including dermal fibrosis, reduced dermal capillary density, and pulmonary fibrosis. Here, we investigated whether uPAR-deficient mice could display the histopathological features of SSc-related cardiomyopathy.