PMID: 11311159Apr 20, 2001Paper

Visualization and functional characterization of the developing murine cardiac conduction system

Development
Stacey RentschlerG I Fishman

Abstract

The cardiac conduction system is a complex network of cells that together orchestrate the rhythmic and coordinated depolarization of the heart. The molecular mechanisms regulating the specification and patterning of cells that form this conductive network are largely unknown. Studies in avian models have suggested that components of the cardiac conduction system arise from progressive recruitment of cardiomyogenic progenitors, potentially influenced by inductive effects from the neighboring coronary vasculature. However, relatively little is known about the process of conduction system development in mammalian species, especially in the mouse, where even the histological identification of the conductive network remains problematic. We have identified a line of transgenic mice where lacZ reporter gene expression delineates the developing and mature murine cardiac conduction system, extending proximally from the sinoatrial node to the distal Purkinje fibers. Optical mapping of cardiac electrical activity using a voltage-sensitive dye confirms that cells identified by the lacZ reporter gene are indeed components of the specialized conduction system. Analysis of lacZ expression during sequential stages of cardiogenesis provides a d...Continue Reading

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