<i>Prdm6</i> Is Essential for Cardiovascular Development <i>In Vivo</i>

<div><p>Members of the PRDM protein family have been shown to play important roles during embryonic development. Previous <i>in vitro</i> and <i>in situ</i> analyses indicated a function of Prdm6 in cells of the vascular system. To reveal physiological functions of Prdm6, we generated conditional <i>Prdm6</i>-deficient mice. Complete deletion of <i>Prdm6</i> results in embryonic lethality due to cardiovascular defects associated with aberrations in vascular patterning. However, smooth muscle cells could be regularly differentiated from <i>Prdm6</i>-deficient embryonic stem cells and vascular smooth muscle cells were present and proliferated normally in <i>Prdm6</i>-deficient embryos. Conditional deletion of <i>Prdm6</i> in the smooth muscle cell lineage using a SM22-Cre driver line resulted in perinatal lethality due to hemorrhage in the lungs. We thus identified Prdm6 as a factor that is essential for the physiological control of cardiovascular development.</p>