title: Ectopic ossification in the scar tissue of rats with myocardial infarction.
abstract: We describe the occurrence of bone-like formations in the left ventricular wall of infarcted rats treated or not with bone marrow cells injected systemically or locally into the myocardium. The incidence of ectopic calcification in hearts has been reported in rare cases in children with infarcts without previous coronary artery disease. Recently, ventricular calcification has been correlated with unselected bone marrow cell transplantation into infarcted rat hearts. Echocardiographic analysis of large infarction in rats frequently reveals the presence of echogenic structures in the left ventricular wall, sometimes projecting to the lumen of the chamber. The histological examination of these echogenic structures exhibited bone, cartilage, and marrow-like formations extending from the collagen-rich matrix of the ventricle wall. Microanalytical techniques verified the presence of hydroxyapatite in the mineral phase. Ossification was found in 25 out of 30 hearts evaluated 90 days postinfarct, being observed in 14 out of 17 animals submitted to cell therapy and in 11 out of 13 infarcted rats not submitted to cell therapy. Our study indicates that chondro-osteogenic differentiation can take place in the pathological rat heart independent of animal treatment with marrow cells.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho UFRJ-CCS, Bloco G, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.
authors.forename: Karla Consort
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Elisabete César
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Mattos
authors.forename: João Pedro Saar
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Werneck-de-castro
authors.forename: Vanessa Pinho
authors.initials: VP
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Ricardo Henrique
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Costa-e-Sousa
authors.forename: Amarildo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Miranda
authors.forename: Emerson Lopes
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Olivares
authors.forename: Marcos
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Farina
authors.forename: José Geraldo
authors.initials: JG
authors.lastname: Mill
authors.forename: J Regina Coeli dos Santos
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Goldenberg
authors.forename: Masako Oya
authors.initials: MO
authors.lastname: Masuda
authors.forename: Antônio Carlos Campos
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: de Carvalho
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D003094:Collagen / Q000378:metabolism; D004452:Echocardiography / Q000379:methods; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D018613:Microscopy, Confocal / Q000379:methods; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning / Q000379:methods; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission / Q000379:methods; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009999:Ossification, Heterotopic / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D003094:Collagen