Congenital hypothyroidism (CH) is one of the most common diseases of the endocrine system among newborns. Infants with CH have been reported to have a high frequency of congenital cardiovascular malformations (CM), such as ventricular and atrial septal defects [1]. Some studies have demonstrated that these cases were due to gene mutations and neural crest abnormality. Infants with CH and CM have been shown to have significantly lower T4 levels than those with isolated CH. However, the role of thyroid hormone in the developing heart has not been reported. In this study, we show the thyroid anlage in chick embryos by immunohistochemistry and follow the expression of thyroid hormone receptor during heart development.
Copyright 2016, The Author(s).