The role of glucose in physiological and pathological heart formation
Developmental Biology · 2021
A review of how glucose shapes normal heart formation and how high glucose in pregnancy can disturb it.
Research question
How does glucose act as both fuel and developmental signal during cardiogenesis?
Clinical & scientific significance
Connects maternal metabolic health with fetal heart development — the bridge between her developmental-biology training and neonatal care.
Key findings reported in the paper
- Cell fuel type is both a consequence and a cause of changes in the genetic program during differentiation.
- In utero hyperglycemia can affect left-right axis formation, cardiac neural crest migration, conotruncal and cushion formation, and causes hypertrophy late in gestation.
Objectives
To summarize the role of glucose in cardiogenesis and the molecular mechanisms of hyperglycemia-associated heart disease.
Methods
Narrative review of developmental biology literature.
This summary is based only on the published abstract.
Glucose and the regenerating newborn heart
01
Before birth
The heart relies mainly on glucose.
02
After birth
Fuel switches to fatty acids as regenerative capacity is lost.
03
More GLUT1
Extra glucose transporter raises glucose uptake and glycogen storage.
04
Nucleotide supply
Glucose metabolites fuel dividing heart-muscle cells.
05
Better repair
Greater regeneration with less scarring after injury.
Studying glucose metabolism to inform therapies for heart failure | Viviana Fajardo, M.D.
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Authors
Nakano H, Fajardo VM, Nakano A
Citation
The role of glucose in physiological and pathological heart formation. Dev Biol. 2021; 475:222-233. doi:10.1016/j.ydbio.2021.01.020. PMID: 33577830.
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