NORMAL AND ABNORMAL CONSEQUENCES OF APOPTOSIS IN THE HUMAN HEART

Knowledge about apoptosis has become essential for understanding many aspects of cardiac structure and function. In the human heart there ar e major periods of morphogenesis that begin only after birth, and some of these processes recur intermittently for many years. Although the exact mechanisms by which these events are initiated or terminated rem ain poorly understood, it is clear that their benefits may be mirrored in destructive effects. In this review, selected examples include nor mal morphogenesis of the cardiac conduction system and the normal post natal involution of the right ventricle, both of which are mediated by apoptosis. Destructive counterparts include familial heart block endi ng in fatal arrhythmias, similar results in the long QT syndrome, and the pathogenesis of both Uhl's anomaly and arrhythmogenic right ventri cular dysplasia; in each apoptosis is an important factor.