Morphologic pattern of the intrinsic ganglionated nerve plexus in mouse heart

Both normal and genetically modified mice are excellent models for investigating molecular mechanisms of arrhythmogenic cardiac diseases that may be associated with an imbalance between sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous input to the heart.

The purpose of this study was to (1) determine the structural organization of the mouse cardiac neural plexus, (2) identify extrinsic neural sources and their relationship with the cardiac plexus, and (3) reveal any anatomic differences in the cardiac plexus between mouse and other species.

Cardiac nerve structures were visualized using histochemical staining for acetylcholinesterase (AChE) on whole heart and thorax-dissected preparations derived from 25 mice. To confirm the reliability of staining parasympathetic and sympathetic neural components in the mouse heart, we applied a histochemical method for AChE and immunohistochemistry for tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and/or choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) on whole mounts preparations from six mice.

Double immunohistochemical labeling of TH and ChAT on AChE-positive neural elements in mouse whole mounts demonstrated equal staining of nerves and ganglia for AChE that were positive for both TH and ChAT. The extrinsic cardiac nerves access the mouse heart at the right and left cranial veins and interblend within the ganglionated nerve plexus of the heart hilum that is persistently localized on the heart base. Nerves and bundles of nerve fibers extend epicardially from this plexus to atria and ventricles by left dorsal, dorsal right atrial, right ventral, and ventral left atrial routes or subplexuses. The right cranial vein receives extrinsic nerves that mainly originate from the right cervicothoracic ganglion and a branch of the right vagus nerve, whereas the left cranial vein is supplied by extrinsic nerves from the left cervicothoracic ganglion and the left vagus nerve. The majority of intrinsic cardiac ganglia are localized on the heart base at the roots of the pulmonary veins. These ganglia are interlinked by interganglionic nerves into the above mentioned nerve plexus of the heart hilum. In general, the examined hearts contained 19 ± 3 ganglia, giving a cumulative ganglion area of 0.4 ± 0.1 mm(2).

Despite substantial anatomic differences in ganglion number and distribution, the structural organization of the intrinsic ganglionated plexus in the mouse heart corresponds in general to that of other mammalian species, including human.