Kelly Robert G, Buckingham Margaret E
CNRS URA 1947, Dept of Developmental Biology, Pasteur Institute, 28 Rue du Dr Roux, Paris, France.
Trends Genet. 2002 Apr;18(4):210-6. doi: 10.1016/s0168-9525(02)02642-2.
Studies of vertebrate heart development have identified key genes and signalling molecules involved in the formation of a myocardial tube from paired heart-forming fields in splanchnic mesoderm. The posterior region of the paired heart-forming fields subsequently contributes myocardial precursor cells to the inflow region or venous pole of the heart. Recently, a population of myocardial precursor cells in chick and mouse embryos has been identified in pharyngeal mesoderm anterior to the early heart tube. This anterior heart-forming field gives rise to myocardium of the outflow region or arterial pole of the heart. The amniote heart is therefore derived from two myocardial precursor cell populations, which appear to be regulated by distinct genetic programmes. Discovery of the anterior heart-forming field has important implications for the interpretation of cardiac defects in mouse mutants and for the study of human congenital heart disease.
对脊椎动物心脏发育的研究已经确定了关键基因和信号分子，这些基因和分子参与了从脏壁中胚层的成对心脏形成区域形成心肌管的过程。成对心脏形成区域的后部随后将心肌前体细胞贡献给心脏的流入区域或静脉极。最近，在鸡和小鼠胚胎的早期心脏管前方的咽中胚层中发现了一群心肌前体细胞。这个前心脏形成区域产生心脏流出区域或动脉极的心肌。因此，羊膜动物的心脏来自两个心肌前体细胞群体，这两个群体似乎受不同的基因程序调控。前心脏形成区域的发现对解释小鼠突变体中的心脏缺陷以及对人类先天性心脏病的研究具有重要意义。
