Mechanisms of synaptic transmission

Generating ring-shaped engineered heart tissues from ventricular and atrial human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes

The functions of the heart are achieved through coordination of different cardiac cell subtypes (e.g., ventricular, atrial, conduction-tissue cardiomyocytes). Human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hPSC-CMs) offer unique opportunities for cardiac research. Traditional studies using these cells focused on single-cells and utilized mixed cell populations. Our goal was to develop clinically-relevant engineered heart tissues (EHTs) comprised of chamber-specific hPSC-CMs. Here we show that such EHTs can be generated by directing hPSCs to differentiate into ventricular or atrial cardiomyocytes, and then embedding these cardiomyocytes in a collagen-hydrogel to create chamber-specific, ring-shaped, EHTs. The chamber-specific EHTs display distinct atrial versus ventricular phenotypes as revealed by immunostaining, gene-expression, optical assessment of action-potentials and conduction velocity, pharmacology, and mechanical force measurements. We also establish an atrial EHT-based arrhythmia model and confirm its usefulness by applying relevant pharmacological interventions. Thus, our chamber-specific EHT models can be used for cardiac disease modeling, pathophysiological studies and drug testing.

The cellular composition of previous engineered heart tissue is often heterogeneous. Here, the authors create chamber-specific human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes to form both ventricular and atrial cells before embedding in collagen-based matrix to form ring-shaped engineered heart tissue.

Synaptic innervation of sympathetic ganglion cells in the bullfrog

The synaptic innervation of the ganglion cells in the ninth and tenth paravertebral sympathetic ganglia of the bullfrog was investigated by histochemical and electron microscopic techniques and by intracellular recording. The neurons were unipolar and most ganglion cells were innervated by a single preganglionic axon. The preganglionic fiber stained for acetylcholinesterase and was observed to spiral around the axon hillock of the ganglion cell before arborizing and making synaptic contact with the neuron. Most synapses were located on the soma near the axon hillock region, with features typical for cholinergic junctions. The axosomatic location of the synapses was manifested physiologically by a decrease in membrane resistance (increased conductance) at the peak of the fast EPSP (excitatory postsynaptic potential) and by a demonstrable reversal potential for the fast EPSP.