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New morphological aspects of blood islands formation in the embryonic mouse hearts

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Abstract

Vasculogenesis in embryonic hearts proceeds by formation of aggregates consisting of erythroblasts and endothelial cells. These aggregates are called blood-islands or blood-island-like structures. We aimed to characterize blood islands in mouse embryonic hearts at stages spanning from 11 dpc through 13 dpc, i.e. prior to the establishment of the coronary circulation. Our observations suggested that there are two types of blood islands. One formed by migrating nucleated erythroblasts, which associated with migrating endothelial cell and the second by in situ emergence of two kinds of cells belonging to separate populations: one resembling an erythroblast progenitor and the second resembling an endothelial-cell progenitor. The subepicardial blood islands contain nucleated erythroblasts, undifferentiated mesenchymal cells, platelets, and early lymphocytes. The subepicardial blood islands resemble vesicles with protruding prongs directed toward the myocardium. Ahead of the prongs, angiogenic sprouting and degradation of fibronectin is observed. Vesicles gradually change their shape from spherical to tubular at 13 dpc and grow and extend along the interventricular sulcuses forming vascular tubes. We presume that the vascular tubes located within the interventricular sulcuses are precursors of coronary veins. Our data seems to indicate that embryonic heart vasculogenesis is accompanied by hematopoiesis

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Acknowledgments

This work is partially supported by Ministry of Science and Higher Education grant (#2 P05A 111 28) and by internal funds of the Medical University of Warsaw. Authors are grateful to Professor Michał Walski (Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw) for his stimulating comment and discussion. Authors thank Anna Podbielska and Maria Michniewska for their excellent technical help.

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  1. Department of Pathological Anatomy, Center of Biostructure, Medical University of Warsaw, Chałubińskiego 5, 02-004, Warsaw, Poland

    Anna Ratajska, Agnieszka Kołodzińska, Anna Jabłońska & Emilia Stachurska

  2. Department of Pathomorphology, Children’s Memorial Health Institute, Al. Dzieci Polskich 20, 04-730, Warsaw, Poland

    Elżbieta Czarnowska

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  1. Anna Ratajska
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Correspondence to Anna Ratajska.

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Ratajska, A., Czarnowska, E., Kołodzińska, A. et al. New morphological aspects of blood islands formation in the embryonic mouse hearts. Histochem Cell Biol 131, 297–311 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00418-008-0542-4

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