Prenatal diagnosis of isolated atrioventricular discordance using fetal echocardiography

A 28-year-old female was referred to our institute at 25 weeks of gestation due to fetal bradycardia. Fetal echocardiography showed the stomach bubble was on the left side with the heart axis pointing to the left. The right sided inferior vena cava connected to the right atrium (RA), and both pulmonary veins connected to the left atrium (LA)peer-reviewe

Impairment of Embryonic Cell Division and Glycosaminoglycan Biosynthesis in Glucuronyltransferase-I-deficient Mice*

We have revealed that in Caenorhabditis elegans, non-sulfated chondroitin is required for normal cell division and cytokinesis at an early developmental stage, whereas heparan sulfate is essential for embryonic morphogenesis in the later stages of development. To clarify the roles of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate in early embryogenesis in mammals, we generated glucuronyltransferase-I (GlcAT-I) knock-out mice by gene targeting. GlcAT-I is an enzyme required for the synthesis of both chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate. Here we report that mice with a deletion of GlcAT-I showed remarkable reduction of the synthesis of chondroitin sulfate and heparan sulfate and embryonic lethality before the 8-cell stage because of failed cytokinesis. In addition, treatment of wild-type 2-cell embryos with chondroitinase ABC had marked effects on cell division, although many heparitinase-treated embryos normally developed to blastocysts. Taken together, these results suggest that chondroitin sulfate in mammals, as with non-sulfated chondroitin in C. elegans, is indispensable for embryonic cell division