Quantification of sympathetic hyperinnervation and denervation after myocardial infarction by three-dimensional assessment of the cardiac sympathetic network in cleared transparent murine hearts.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The sympathetic nervous system is critical in maintaining the normal physiological function of the heart. Its dysfunction in pathological states may exacerbate the substrate for arrhythmias. Obviously, knowledge of its three-dimensional (3D) structure is important, however, it has been revealed by conventional methods only to a limited extent. In this study, a new method of tissue clearance in combination with immunostaining unravels the 3D structure of the sympathetic cardiac network as well as its changes after myocardial infarction.

Methods and results

Hearts isolated from adult male mice were optically cleared using the CUBIC-perfusion protocol. After making the hearts transparent, sympathetic nerves and coronary vessels were immunofluorescently labeled, and t

SUBMITTER: Yokoyama T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5533449 | biostudies-literature | 2017

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature