....................................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgement ........................................................................................................................................ v List of Figures .............................................................................................................................................. xi List of Abbreviation .................................................................................................................................... xv Chapter 1 : Introduction ................................................................................................................................ 1 1.1. RA metabolism and signaling ....................................................................................................... 2 1.2. Cardiogenesis and its dependence on RA signaling ..................................................................... 9 1.3. RA and early cardiogenesis ........................................................................................................ 12 1.4. The role of RA in specification of cardiac progenitor pool ........................................................ 13 1.5. The role of RA in determining the A-P patterning of heart tube ................................................ 17 1.6. RA and the formation of outflow tract (OFT) ............................................................................ 22 1.7. RA and the myocardial proliferation in the ventricle ................................................................. 24 1.8. RA and the development of coronary vessels ............................................................................. 29 1.9. RA and the heart regeneration .................................................................................................... 34 1.10. Conclusion .............................................................................................................................. 36 Chapter 2 : Roles of DHRS3 in Retinoic Acid Metabolism in Early Embryogenesis ................................ 38 Abstract ................................................................................................................................................... 38.................................................................................................................................................. 38 2.
.................................................................................................................................................... iii Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................................... iv Dedication ................................................................................................................................................. vii Table of