The Heart-Placenta Axis in the First Month of Pregnancy: Induction and Prevention of Cardiovascular Birth Defects
Figure 3
In contrast to the control embryo showing a looping, single tubular heart (right column of figure panels), a lithium-exposed embryo demonstrates a delay in the bilateral heart fields coming together at the midline, and thus a condition of cardiabifida is observed (left column of panels). The experimental, cardiabifida, heart also shows bilateral regions of the heart in which cardiomyocyte differentiation, as defined by MF-20 staining for sarcomeric myosin heavy chain expression, has been suppressed (see areas delineated by white arrows). A–C shows sections through heart from anterior to posterior for the experimental heart. D. A higher magnification of boxed-in region in C is shown here. After the effect of acute environmental exposure dissipates, cardiomyocyte differentiation reappears posteriorly. E–H depict anterior to posterior sections of the control heart. Approximate regions of sections that cut through the heart are shown by lines in the whole mounts of the respective hearts on top.
