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J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg 2008;136:1178-1186
© 2008 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery

Surgery for Acquired Cardiovascular Disease

Transgenic model of cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma formation

^a Department of Cardiology and Angiology, Hospital of the University of Münster, Münster, Germany
^c Department of Nuclear Medicine, Hospital of the University of Münster, Münster, Germany
^e Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital of the University of Münster, Münster, Germany
^b Leibniz Institute for Arteriosclerosis Research, the University of Münster, Münster, Germany
^d Institute of Pathology, Hospital of the University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany

Received for publication December 16, 2007; revisions received February 18, 2008; accepted for publication April 20, 2008.

^_* Address for reprints: Jürgen R. Sindermann, MD, Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Hospital of the University of Münster, Albert-Schweitzer-Strasse 33, 48149 Münster, Germany. (Email: sinderm{at}uni-muenster.de).

Objectives: Cardiac rhabdomyosarcomas are rare, and the pathogenesis of this detrimental disease is widely unknown. Most data are obtained from case reports or small series, and models for systematic pathogenetic studies are lacking. We aimed to establish a transgenic mouse model of cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma formation.

Methods: Standard techniques were used to construct a minigene comprised of the 5' region of the 1.4-kb SM22 gene (expressed in embryonic cardiac muscle) and the 2.7-kb SV40 T antigen early region. This T antigen fragment includes the coding sequences for the binding sites of p53 and the proteins of the pRb family. Genotyping of transgenic mice was performed by means of polymerase chain reaction, and phenotypic expression was evaluated by means of immunohistochemistry.

Results: Transgenic mice were studied at the age of approximately 8 to 12 weeks. Cardiac tumors were found of variable size in the left or right sides of the heart and were associated with T antigen expression. Histologic analysis revealed a 3.1-fold enhanced cell density, enlarged cell nuclei, and a 3.4-fold enhanced DNA content. Phenotypic characterization of cardiac tumors resulted in positive staining for desmin, smooth muscle -actin, troponin C, and Myo D1, which met the criteria for rhabdomyosarcomas.

Conclusions: To the best of our knowledge, the present study is the first description of a mouse model of cardiac rhabdomyosarcoma formation based on genetic modulation. Our model will be a valuable tool for illuminating the pathogenesis of cardiac rhabdomyosarcomas and will allow the testing of new therapeutic approaches to fight this dreadful disease.