scholarly journals From Stripes to a Beating Heart: Early Cardiac Development in Zebrafish

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Cassie L. Kemmler ◽  
Fréderike W. Riemslagh ◽  
Hannah R. Moran ◽  
Christian Mosimann
Keyword(s):  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Cardiac Development ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Lineage Tracing ◽  
Genetic Lineage ◽  
Zebrafish Model ◽  
Lateral Plate ◽  
Cardiac Progenitors

The heart is the first functional organ to form during vertebrate development. Congenital heart defects are the most common type of human birth defect, many originating as anomalies in early heart development. The zebrafish model provides an accessible vertebrate system to study early heart morphogenesis and to gain new insights into the mechanisms of congenital disease. Although composed of only two chambers compared with the four-chambered mammalian heart, the zebrafish heart integrates the core processes and cellular lineages central to cardiac development across vertebrates. The rapid, translucent development of zebrafish is amenable to in vivo imaging and genetic lineage tracing techniques, providing versatile tools to study heart field migration and myocardial progenitor addition and differentiation. Combining transgenic reporters with rapid genome engineering via CRISPR-Cas9 allows for functional testing of candidate genes associated with congenital heart defects and the discovery of molecular causes leading to observed phenotypes. Here, we summarize key insights gained through zebrafish studies into the early patterning of uncommitted lateral plate mesoderm into cardiac progenitors and their regulation. We review the central genetic mechanisms, available tools, and approaches for modeling congenital heart anomalies in the zebrafish as a representative vertebrate model.

scholarly journals Embryonic Mouse Cardiodynamic OCT Imaging

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 42
Author(s):  
Andrew L. Lopez ◽  
Shang Wang ◽  
Irina V. Larina
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Cardiac Development ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Mouse Heart ◽  
Embryonic Mouse ◽  
Insight Into

The embryonic heart is an active and developing organ. Genetic studies in mouse models have generated great insight into normal heart development and congenital heart defects, and suggest mechanical forces such as heart contraction and blood flow to be implicated in cardiogenesis and disease. To explore this relationship and investigate the interplay between biomechanical forces and cardiac development, live dynamic cardiac imaging is essential. Cardiodynamic imaging with optical coherence tomography (OCT) is proving to be a unique approach to functional analysis of the embryonic mouse heart. Its compatibility with live culture systems, reagent-free contrast, cellular level resolution, and millimeter scale imaging depth make it capable of imaging the heart volumetrically and providing spatially resolved information on heart wall dynamics and blood flow. Here, we review the progress made in mouse embryonic cardiodynamic imaging with OCT, highlighting leaps in technology to overcome limitations in resolution and acquisition speed. We describe state-of-the-art functional OCT methods such as Doppler OCT and OCT angiography for blood flow imaging and quantification in the beating heart. As OCT is a continuously developing technology, we provide insight into the future developments of this area, toward the investigation of normal cardiogenesis and congenital heart defects.

scholarly journals Early patterning and specification of cardiac progenitors in gastrulating mesoderm

eLife ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
W Patrick Devine ◽  
Joshua D Wythe ◽  
Matthew George ◽  
Kazuko Koshiba-Takeuchi ◽  
Benoit G Bruneau
Keyword(s):  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Cardiac Regeneration ◽  
Cardiac Cells ◽  
Cardiac Progenitors ◽  
Compartment Boundary ◽  
Left And Right ◽  
Cellular Components

Mammalian heart development requires precise allocation of cardiac progenitors. The existence of a multipotent progenitor for all anatomic and cellular components of the heart has been predicted but its identity and contribution to the two cardiac progenitor ‘fields’ has remained undefined. Here we show, using clonal genetic fate mapping, that Mesp1+ cells in gastrulating mesoderm are rapidly specified into committed cardiac precursors fated for distinct anatomic regions of the heart. We identify Smarcd3 as a marker of early specified cardiac precursors and identify within these precursors a compartment boundary at the future junction of the left and right ventricles that arises prior to morphogenesis. Our studies define the timing and hierarchy of cardiac progenitor specification and demonstrate that the cellular and anatomical fate of mesoderm-derived cardiac cells is specified very early. These findings will be important to understand the basis of congenital heart defects and to derive cardiac regeneration strategies.

scholarly journals Abnormal Cardiac Development in the Absence of Heart Glycogen

2004 ◽  
Vol 24 (16) ◽  
pp. 7179-7187 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bartholomew A. Pederson ◽  
Hanying Chen ◽  
Jill M. Schroeder ◽  
Weinian Shou ◽  
Anna A. DePaoli-Roach ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiac Function ◽  
Cardiac Muscle ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Cardiac Development ◽  
Glycogen Synthase ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Mendelian Inheritance ◽  
And Function ◽  
Impaired Cardiac Function

ABSTRACT Glycogen serves as a repository of glucose in many mammalian tissues. Mice lacking this glucose reserve in muscle, heart, and several other tissues were generated by disruption of the GYS1 gene, which encodes an isoform of glycogen synthase. Crossing mice heterozygous for the GYS1 disruption resulted in a significant underrepresentation of GYS1-null mice in the offspring. Timed matings established that Mendelian inheritance was followed for up to 18.5 days postcoitum (dpc) and that ∼90% of GYS1-null animals died soon after birth due to impaired cardiac function. Defects in cardiac development began between 11.5 and 14.5 dpc. At 18.5 dpc, the hearts were significantly smaller, with reduced ventricular chamber size and enlarged atria. Consistent with impaired cardiac function, edema, pooling of blood, and hemorrhagic liver were seen. Glycogen synthase and glycogen were undetectable in cardiac muscle and skeletal muscle from the surviving null mice, and the hearts showed normal morphology and function. Congenital heart disease is one of the most common birth defects in humans, at up to 1 in 50 live births. The results provide the first direct evidence that the ability to synthesize glycogen in cardiac muscle is critical for normal heart development and hence that its impairment could be a significant contributor to congenital heart defects.

scholarly journals Focused Strategies for Defining the Genetic Architecture of Congenital Heart Defects

Genes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (6) ◽  
pp. 827
Author(s):  
Lisa J. Martin ◽  
D Woodrow Benson
Keyword(s):  
Genetic Variation ◽  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Genetic Architecture ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Rare Variants ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Genetic Origin ◽  
Genetic Studies ◽  
The Ideal

Congenital heart defects (CHD) are malformations present at birth that occur during heart development. Increasing evidence supports a genetic origin of CHD, but in the process important challenges have been identified. This review begins with information about CHD and the importance of detailed phenotyping of study subjects. To facilitate appropriate genetic study design, we review DNA structure, genetic variation in the human genome and tools to identify the genetic variation of interest. Analytic approaches powered for both common and rare variants are assessed. While the ideal outcome of genetic studies is to identify variants that have a causal role, a more realistic goal for genetic analytics is to identify variants in specific genes that influence the occurrence of a phenotype and which provide keys to open biologic doors that inform how the genetic variants modulate heart development. It has never been truer that good genetic studies start with good planning. Continued progress in unraveling the genetic underpinnings of CHD will require multidisciplinary collaboration between geneticists, quantitative scientists, clinicians, and developmental biologists.

scholarly journals Say NO to ROS: Their Roles in Embryonic Heart Development and Pathogenesis of Congenital Heart Defects in Maternal Diabetes

Antioxidants ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 8 (10) ◽  
pp. 436 ◽  
Author(s):  
Engineer ◽  
Saiyin ◽  
Greco ◽  
Feng
Keyword(s):  
Oxidative Stress ◽  
Nitric Oxide ◽  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Maternal Diabetes ◽  
Embryonic Heart ◽  
Pregestational Diabetes ◽  
Enos Uncoupling

Congenital heart defects (CHDs) are the most prevalent and serious birth defect, occurring in 1% of all live births. Pregestational maternal diabetes is a known risk factor for the development of CHDs, elevating the risk in the child by more than four-fold. As the prevalence of diabetes rapidly rises among women of childbearing age, there is a need to investigate the mechanisms and potential preventative strategies for these defects. In experimental animal models of pregestational diabetes induced-CHDs, upwards of 50% of offspring display congenital malformations of the heart, including septal, valvular, and outflow tract defects. Specifically, the imbalance of nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) signaling is a major driver of the development of CHDs in offspring of mice with pregestational diabetes. NO from endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) is crucial to cardiogenesis, regulating various cellular and molecular processes. In fact, deficiency in eNOS results in CHDs and coronary artery malformation. Embryonic hearts from diabetic dams exhibit eNOS uncoupling and oxidative stress. Maternal treatment with sapropterin, a cofactor of eNOS, and antioxidants such as N-acetylcysteine, vitamin E, and glutathione as well as maternal exercise have been shown to improve eNOS function, reduce oxidative stress, and lower the incidence CHDs in the offspring of mice with pregestational diabetes. This review summarizes recent data on pregestational diabetes-induced CHDs, and offers insights into the important roles of NO and ROS in embryonic heart development and pathogenesis of CHDs in maternal diabetes.

scholarly journals Ventricular, atrial and outflow tract heart progenitors arise from spatially and molecularly distinct regions of the primitive streak

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenzo Ivanovitch ◽  
Pablo Soro-Barrio ◽  
Probir Chakravarty ◽  
Rebecca A Jones ◽  
S. Neda Mousavy Gharavy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Primitive Streak ◽  
Outflow Tract ◽  
Lineage Tracing ◽  
Molecular Signature ◽  
Genetic Lineage ◽  
Cardiac Progenitors ◽  
Heart Field ◽  
Genetic Lineage Tracing

AbstractThe heart develops from two sources of mesoderm progenitors, the first and second heart field (FHF and SHF). Using a single cell transcriptomic assay in combination with genetic lineage tracing, we find the FHF and SHF are subdivided into distinct pools of progenitors in gastrulating mouse embryos at earlier stages than previously thought. Each subpopulation has a distinct origin in the primitive streak. The first progenitors to leave the primitive streak contribute to the left ventricle, shortly after right ventricle progenitor emigrate, followed by the outflow tract and atrial progenitors. Although cells allocated to the outflow tract and atrium leave the primitive streak at a similar stage, they arise from different regions. Outflow tract originate from distal locations in the primitive streak while atrial progenitors are positioned more proximally. Moreover, single cell RNA sequencing demonstrates that the primitive streak cells contributing to the ventricles have a distinct molecular signature from those forming the outflow tract and atrium. We conclude that cardiac progenitors are pre-patterned within the primitive streak and this prefigures their allocation to distinct anatomical structures of the heart. Together, our data provide a new molecular and spatial map of mammalian cardiac progenitors that will support future studies of heart development, function and disease.

scholarly journals Semaphorin3f as an intrinsic regulator of chamber-specific heart development

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rami Halabi ◽  
Paula B. Cechmanek ◽  
Carrie L. Hehr ◽  
Sarah McFarlane
Keyword(s):  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Border Region ◽  
Specific Gene ◽  
Atrioventricular Canal ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Ventricular Cardiomyocytes

During development a pool of precursors form a heart with atrial and ventricular chambers that exhibit distinct transcriptional and electrophysiological properties. Normal development of these chambers is essential for full term survival of the fetus, and deviations result in congenital heart defects. The large number of genes that may cause congenital heart defects when mutated, and the genetic variability and penetrance of the ensuing phenotypes, reveals a need to understand the molecular mechanisms that allow for the formation of chamber-specific cardiomyocyte differentiation. We find that in the developing zebrafish heart, mRNA for a secreted Semaphorin (Sema), Sema3fb, is expressed by all cardiomyocytes, whereas mRNA for its receptor Plexina3 (Plxna3) is expressed by ventricular cardiomyocytes. In sema3fb CRISPR zebrafish mutants, ventricular chamber development is impaired; the ventricles of mutants are smaller in size than their wild type siblings, apparently because of differences in cell size and not cell numbers, with ventricular cardiomyocytes failing to undergo normal developmental hypertrophy. Analysis of chamber differentiation indicates defects in chamber specific gene expression at the border between the ventricular and atrial chambers, with spillage of ventricular chamber genes into the atrium, and vice versa, and a failure to restrict bmp4a mRNA to the atrioventricular canal. The disrupted atrioventricular border region in mutants is accompanied by hypoplastic heart chambers and impaired cardiac function. These data suggest a model whereby cardiomyocytes secrete a Sema cue that, through spatially restricted expression of the receptor, signals in a ventricular chamber-specific manner to establish a distinct border between atrial and ventricular chambers that is important for functional development of the heart.

scholarly journals Ventricular, atrial, and outflow tract heart progenitors arise from spatially and molecularly distinct regions of the primitive streak

PLoS Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (5) ◽  
pp. e3001200
Author(s):  
Kenzo Ivanovitch ◽  
Pablo Soro-Barrio ◽  
Probir Chakravarty ◽  
Rebecca A. Jones ◽  
Donald M. Bell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Heart Development ◽  
Primitive Streak ◽  
Outflow Tract ◽  
Lineage Tracing ◽  
Molecular Signature ◽  
Genetic Lineage ◽  
Cardiac Progenitors ◽  
Heart Field ◽  
Genetic Lineage Tracing

The heart develops from 2 sources of mesoderm progenitors, the first and second heart field (FHF and SHF). Using a single-cell transcriptomic assay combined with genetic lineage tracing and live imaging, we find the FHF and SHF are subdivided into distinct pools of progenitors in gastrulating mouse embryos at earlier stages than previously thought. Each subpopulation has a distinct origin in the primitive streak. The first progenitors to leave the primitive streak contribute to the left ventricle, shortly after right ventricle progenitor emigrate, followed by the outflow tract and atrial progenitors. Moreover, a subset of atrial progenitors are gradually incorporated in posterior locations of the FHF. Although cells allocated to the outflow tract and atrium leave the primitive streak at a similar stage, they arise from different regions. Outflow tract cells originate from distal locations in the primitive streak while atrial progenitors are positioned more proximally. Moreover, single-cell RNA sequencing demonstrates that the primitive streak cells contributing to the ventricles have a distinct molecular signature from those forming the outflow tract and atrium. We conclude that cardiac progenitors are prepatterned within the primitive streak and this prefigures their allocation to distinct anatomical structures of the heart. Together, our data provide a new molecular and spatial map of mammalian cardiac progenitors that will support future studies of heart development, function, and disease.

scholarly journals Self-assembling human heart organoids for the modeling of cardiac development and congenital heart disease

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yonatan R. Lewis-Israeli ◽  
Aaron H. Wasserman ◽  
Mitchell A. Gabalski ◽  
Brett D. Volmert ◽  
Yixuan Ming ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Congenital Heart Defects ◽  
Self Assembly ◽  
Human Heart ◽  
Congenital Heart ◽  
Cardiac Development ◽  
Heart Defects ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Cardiac Tissues

AbstractCongenital heart defects constitute the most common human birth defect, however understanding of how these disorders originate is limited by our ability to model the human heart accurately in vitro. Here we report a method to generate developmentally relevant human heart organoids by self-assembly using human pluripotent stem cells. Our procedure is fully defined, efficient, reproducible, and compatible with high-content approaches. Organoids are generated through a three-step Wnt signaling modulation strategy using chemical inhibitors and growth factors. Heart organoids are comparable to age-matched human fetal cardiac tissues at the transcriptomic, structural, and cellular level. They develop sophisticated internal chambers with well-organized multi-lineage cardiac cell types, recapitulate heart field formation and atrioventricular specification, develop a complex vasculature, and exhibit robust functional activity. We also show that our organoid platform can recreate complex metabolic disorders associated with congenital heart defects, as demonstrated by an in vitro model of pregestational diabetes-induced congenital heart defects.

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