Abstract:
The proper intracellular Ca2+ signaling is essential for normal cell functions and organ development, and the maintaining Ca2+ homeostasis in cardiac myocytes is of functional importance for the intact heart. As the first functional organ in the vertebrate embryo,the heart is continuously remodeled and maintains its physiologic pumping function in response to increasing circulatory demands. The expressions of Ca2+ handing proteins in the embryonic heart, however, are different from those in neonatal and adult hearts, which means that the regulation of Ca2+ transients in embryonic cardiomyocytes is different from that in adult cardiac myocytes. Recent advances in molecular and cellular biology, as well as the application of embryonic stem cell differentiation system, have made progress in uncovering the regulation of Ca2+ homeostasis during cardiomyogenesis. This paper briefly summarizes the Ca2+ homeostasis during early development of cardiomyocytes and reviews current knowledge of the regulatory mechanisms controlling Ca2+ homeostasis during cardiomyocyte development.