Objective: The aim of this work was to target a vital reporter gene in the mouse cardiac conduction system (CS) to distinguish this tissue from the surrounding myocardium in the adult heart.
Methods: A transgenic mouse line has been created in which EGFP is expressed under the control of the Cx40 gene. Correlative investigations associating EGFP imaging and electrophysiological techniques were carried out on the adult heart and isolated cardiomyocytes.
Results: In the heart of the Cx40(EGFP/+) mice, EGFP signal was seen in the coronary arteries, the atria, the atrioventricular (AV) node and the His-Purkinje system. The latter was found to be structurally and functionally asymmetrical. The anatomical asymmetry was apparent in both the number of strands or fasciculi making up the His bundle branches (BBs) (1 strand on the right, 20 or so on the left), and the density (low on the right, high on the left) of the network of Purkinje fibers (PFs) that extends over the ventricular wall surfaces. The profiles of the electrical activation patterns recorded on the right and left flanks of the septum were also asymmetrical, mirroring the architecture of the branches. EGFP made it easy to identify the Purkinje cells in populations of dissociated cardiomyocytes and they were investigated using the patch-clamp technique. The hyperpolarization-activated current (If) was recorded in all spontaneously active Purkinje cells.
Conclusions: This investigation provides positive evidence of the asymmetry of the His-Purkinje system of the adult mouse, and the first patch-clamp recording data on murine cardiac Purkinje cells. This mouse model opens up new perspectives for investigating the contribution of specific genes to the morphology and function of the His-Purkinje system.