Apical Resection Mouse Model to Study Early Mammalian Heart Regeneration

Cardiovascular disease plagues the whole world due to intensive lifestyle changes. Heart regeneration holds great promise for repairing and restoring cardiomyocytes lost due to injury and disease. In contrast to the robust cardiac regeneration of certain lower vertebrates, adult mammalian hearts typically show minimal capacity for heart regeneration and repair. However, recent studies have sparked considerable scientific interest with the finding that, between postnatal day 1 to 7 (P1 to P7), the neonatal mouse heart retains significant regenerative potential after apical resection (i.e., surgical amputation and exposure of left ventricular apex). One major controversy over this finding might be due to the diverse surgery-related procedures used in efforts to replicate or expand upon this important finding. These instructions dynamically present the materials and methodology for apical resection in a mouse model. The salient steps of this rodent survival surgery involve hypothermia anesthesia, thoracotomy, surgical amputation of heart ventricular apex, and suture and recovery of mice. The approach described could expand the application of the apical resection mouse model for cardiovascular research.