Heart development Flashcards
Why are many different model organisms used when looking at the heart?
- Different model organisms have different advantages
- Have different structures to their heart - show different developmental and evolution of the heart
What is the structure of a 4-chambered heart?
2 atrium
2 ventricles
Separated by valves and septum
2 separate circulatory systems (pulmonary and body circuits)
Oxygenated and deoxygenated blood kept separate in the heart
Which organisms have a 4-chambered heart?
Human
Mouse
Chick
What is the structure of a 3-chambered heart?
2 atrium
1 ventricle
2 separate circulatory systems
Oxygenated and deoxygenated blood kept separate in the heart
What organism has a 3-chambered heart?
Xenopus
What is the structure of a 2-chambered heart?
1 atrium
1 ventricle
1 circulatory system
Blood from ventricle –> to gills (where becomes oxygenated) –> rest of body
What organism has a 2-chambered heart?
Zebrafish
What is the structure of a tubular heart?
Single tube
Lined with valves - promote blood flow in ONE direction
What organism has a tubular heart?
Drosophila
Where does the heart derive from in the human?
From the cardiogenic mesoderm
What are the basics of how the heart develops in humans?
1) Cardiogenic mesoderm forms cardiac crescent
2) Cells within the cardiac crescent migrate towards the MIDLINE and COALESCE to form a SINGLE TUBE
3) Tube then undergoes highly ASYMMETRIC CARDIAC LOOPING to form the heart
When is the cardiac crescent of the heart formed in humans?
2 weeks pf
What does the cardiac crescent consist of at 2 weeks pf?
Mesodermal tissue and 2 endocardial tubes either side of the crescent
When is the single heart tube in humans formed?
3 weeks pf
How long does heart looping in the human take?
1 week
At what point is the heart well-looped?
4 weeks pf
Why is heart looping required?
- To ensure the future chambers of the heart are well aligned
- So, when the heat undergoes MATURATION - everything is in the right place
What happens in the human during maturation of the heart?
- Formation of the septa and valves
- Connection of the inflow/outflow tracts
When is the heart well-formed?
7 weeks pf
How is the development of the heart in the mouse different/same to in humans?
Quicker process but highly CONSERVED:
- Cardiac crescent formation at E7.5
- Heart looping at E8.5 - E9.5
- Well looped heart and emergence of chambers at E10.5
- Mature, functional heart at E13
What is the process of heart formation in the zebrafish?
1) Migration of 2 groups of precursors from the left and right sides of the heart tube to form the CARDIAC DISC
2) Cardiac disc undergoes EXTENSION to form the HEART TUBE
3) Heart tube undergoes looping
Why is studying the formation of the zebrafish heart advantageous?
Everything happens very quickly - advantageous if looking at the very EARLY stages of heart development
When does the cardiac disc in the zebrafish from?
20 hours pf
In the zebrafish, where does the cardiac disc undergo extension to form the heart tube?
24 hours pf
In the zebrafish, where does the heart tube undergo looping?
36 hpf
In the zebrafish, when has the heart finished looping?
48hpf
At 48hpf, what 2 things can be seen in the zebrafish heart?
- Restriction of the atrioventricular canal
- Initiation of the formation of the valves
What happens once the heart has formed?
Undergoes maturation
Where do cardiac cells originate from?
2 separate origins (2 heart fields)
From the mesodermal tissues
What are the heart fields?
2 separate sets of cardiac precursors that are specified very early on in development:
- First heart field
- Second heart field
How are the 2 heart fields different from each other?
- Very distinct spatial arrangement during morphological heart development
- Contribute to very specific structures of the heart
What structures do the FHF cells contribute to in the developed heart?
- LEFT ventricle
- Left and right atria
What structures do the SHF cells contribute to in the developed heart?
- RIGHT ventricle
- Left and right atria
- Outflow tract
Where are heart field cells specified?
Along the primitive streak (mouse)
OR
Along the embryonic margin (fish)
What is the specification of the heart field cells controlled by?
Combinatorial MORPHOGEN signalling
Describe the specification of FHF cells
1) Cardiac mesoderm subjected to NON-CANONICAL WNT signalling
2) BMP signalling
Describe the specification of SHF cells
1) Cardiac mesoderm subjected to NON-CANONICAL WNT signalling
2) Beta-catenin and FGF signalling
Once the cardiac cells are specified, what must the cells do?
Express specific transcription factors that demark them as:
- Cardiac cells
AND
- Either FHF or SHF SPECIFIC cardiac precursors