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Headline: Mouse's Heart Is First to Be Filmed Growing Fron Embryo
Caption: **VIDEO AVAILABLE: CONTACT INFO@COVERMG.COM TO RECEIVE** British scientists have captured unprecedented 3D footage showing the earliest stages of heart formation in developing mouse embryos. In a study published in The EMBO Journal, researchers at University College London used cutting-edge light-sheet microscopy to track individual cells over a 48-hour period, from a key developmental milestone known as gastrulation through to the emergence of the primitive heart. The team developed a specially engineered mouse model and combined it with advanced imaging techniques to observe living tissue in remarkable detail without causing damage. A thin sheet of light illuminated the embryos, allowing scientists to construct clear three-dimensional images and trace each cell’s journey as it moved, divided, and specialised. Dr Kenzo Ivanovitch, senior author of the study from the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and British Heart Foundation Intermediate Research Fellow, said: “This is the first time we’ve been able to observe heart cells this closely, and for such an extended period, during mammalian development. Growing embryos in the lab over several days was already a challenge – and what we uncovered was totally unexpected.” By tagging developing heart muscle cells – known as cardiomyocytes – with fluorescent markers, the researchers were able to track them in vivid detail as they assembled into the heart’s basic structures. Images were captured every two minutes for 40 hours, resulting in a high-resolution time-lapse that revealed how the heart begins to take shape. The footage allowed scientists to trace each glowing cell back to its origins and build a detailed lineage map – or “family tree” – of how the heart forms from early embryonic cells. During gastrulation, when embryonic cells begin to specialise and lay down the blueprint of the body, researchers discovered that cells destined to form only the heart appear far earlier than previously thought – typically within the first four to five hours following initial cell division. Rather than behaving chaotically, these cells followed precise routes through the embryo, suggesting that even at this early stage, cells somehow “knew” whether they would go on to form parts of the atria or ventricles. “Our findings show that the processes behind heart formation are far more organised than previously believed,” said Dr Ivanovitch. “What looked like random movement was actually part of a hidden pattern ensuring the correct formation of the heart.” Lead author Shayma Abukar, a PhD researcher at the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and the UCL Institute for Cardiovascular Science, said: “We’re now working to understand the signals guiding this complex choreography of cell movements during early development. The heart doesn’t arise from a single cell group – it’s built from multiple, distinct populations that appear at different times and locations.” The discovery could dramatically shift scientific understanding of congenital heart defects – conditions that affect nearly one in every 100 babies – and pave the way for improved treatments. It may also help scientists working to grow heart tissue in the lab, potentially benefiting future regenerative medicine. Dr Ivanovitch added: “In time, we hope this work will help unlock new principles of organ formation. These insights could be used to guide how we grow and shape tissues for therapeutic purposes.” The research was funded by the British Heart Foundation.
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