Matthew El Azzi
Smile by Design, Australia
Title: The Development of the Tongue and its potential in Cardiomyocyte regeneration: Literature Review
Biography
Biography: Matthew El Azzi
Abstract
The tongue is a unique muscular organ, which is essential for survival of the human species. There are stark characteristics about the tongue that make it an area of interest, namely its regenerative capacity and its embryogenesis. This differentiates it from conventional limb skeletal muscle and allows similarity to be noted with cardiac muscle. Since the brachial arches, which give rise to the structures of the tongue in foetal development are in such close proximity to the primordial heart, it is plausible that the heart and the tongue harbour similar stem cells. Recent studies have shown that the tongue, once differentiated, retains a population of satellite/progenitor undifferentiated cells, which allow for regeneration in the event of an insult. Since the human heart has traditionally been considered a terminally differentiated quiescent organ, having minor regenerative potential, the question thus arises, can the tongue be utilised to regenerate cardiomyocytes after insults such as myocardial infarctions? The present paper aims to discuss the early development of the tongue, the common transcription factors and the molecular signatures found in both the heart and the tongue, and attempt to provide directions toward possible future developments in this area.