Extreme hydrops fetalis and cardiovascular abnormalities in mice lacking a functional Adrenomedullin gene

KM Caron, O Smithies - Proceedings of the National …, 2001 - National Acad Sciences
KM Caron, O Smithies
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2001National Acad Sciences
Adrenomedullin, a recently identified potent vasodilator, is expressed widely and has been
suggested to have functions ranging from reproduction to blood pressure regulation. To
elucidate these functions and define more precisely sites of Adm expression, we replaced
the coding region of the Adm gene in mice with a sequence encoding enhanced green
fluorescent protein while leaving the Adm promoter intact. We find that Adm−/− embryos die
at midgestation with extreme hydrops fetalis and cardiovascular abnormalities, including …
Adrenomedullin, a recently identified potent vasodilator, is expressed widely and has been suggested to have functions ranging from reproduction to blood pressure regulation. To elucidate these functions and define more precisely sites of Adm expression, we replaced the coding region of the Adm gene in mice with a sequence encoding enhanced green fluorescent protein while leaving the Adm promoter intact. We find that Adm−/− embryos die at midgestation with extreme hydrops fetalis and cardiovascular abnormalities, including overdeveloped ventricular trabeculae and underdeveloped arterial walls. These data suggest that genetically determined absence of Adm may be one cause of nonimmune hydrops fetalis in humans.
National Acad Sciences