In 2001, three independent groups reported the identification of a novel cluster of progenitor
cells that contribute to heart development in mouse and chicken embryos. This population of …

Insight into the mechanisms underlying congenital heart defects and the use of stem cells for
cardiac repair are major research goals in cardiovascular biology. In the early embryo …

The formation of the heart is a complex morphogenetic process that depends on the
spatiotemporally regulated contribution of cardiac progenitor cells. These mainly derive from …

Congenital heart defects (CHD) affect 1 in 100 live births and result from defects in cardiac
development. Growth of the early heart tube occurs by the progressive addition of second …

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the findings that preceded and led to the
identification of this progenitor cell population, and different molecular and genetic …

At the end of the first week of mouse gestation, cardiomyocyte differentiation initiates in the
cardiac crescent to give rise to the linear heart tube. The heart tube subsequently elongates …

The deployment of progenitor cells from the second heart field (SHF) to the poles of the
cardiac tube drives heart tube elongation during looping morphogenesis. Defects in this …

Heart formation relies on two sources of cardiomyocytes: the first heart field (FHF), which
gives rise to the linear heart tube, and the second heart field (SHF), which gives rise to the …

The heart develops in a synchronized sequence of proliferation and differentiation of cardiac
progenitor cells (CPCs) from two anatomically distinct pools of cells, the first heart field (FHF) …

ABSTRACT A key event in vertebrate heart development is the timely addition of second
heart field (SHF) progenitor cells to the poles of the heart tube. This accretion process must …