Molecular and Microscopic Analysis of Altered Gene Expression in Transgenic and Gene Targeted Mice

Two myosin heavy chains (MyHC) are expressed in the mammalian heart and are differentially regulated during development. In the mouse, the α-MyHC is expressed constitutively in the atrium. At birth, the β-MyHC is downregulated and replaced by the α-MyHC, which is the sole cardiac MyHC isoform in the adult heart. We have employed transgenic and gene-targeting methodologies to study the regulation of cardiac MyHC gene expression and the functional and developmental consequences of altered α-MyHC expression in the mouse.We previously characterized an α-MyHC promoter capable of driving tissue-specific and developmentally correct expression of a CAT (chloramphenicol acetyltransferase) marker in the mouse. Tissue surveys detected a small amount of CAT activity in the lung (Fig. 1a). The results of in situ hybridization analyses indicated that the pattern of CAT transcript in the adult heart (Fig. 1b, top panel) is the same as that of α-MyHC (Fig. 1b, lower panel). The α-MyHC gene is expressed in a layer of cardiac muscle (pulmonary myocardium) associated with the pulmonary veins (Fig. 1c). These studies extend our understanding of α-MyHC expression and delimit a third cardiac compartment.