Effect of a cardiomyocyte-specific Hira conditional knockout on gene expression in the heart. Mus musculus

We performed gene expression profiling by microarray using RNA extracted from healthy free wall left ventricle tissues from control and Hira cardiomyocyte-specific conditional knockout mice at 6 weeks of age. Hira is a histone chaperone responsible for replication-independent incorporation of histone variant H3.3 at actively transcribed regions. Conditional knockout of Hira in cardiomyocytes resulted in impaired cardiac function, cardiomyocyte degeneration and focal replacement fibrosis. These results illustrate the role of Hira in controlling the cardiac gene program. Overall design: 4 animals per group (control and Hira conditional knockout) hybridized in triplicate. RNA was extracted from healthy free wall left ventricle.