Towards spatio-temporally resolved developmental cardiac gene regulatory networks in zebrafish

Heart formation in the zebrafish involves a rapid, complex series of morphogenetic events in three-dimensional space that spans cardiac lineage specification through to chamber formation and maturation. This process is tightly orchestrated by a cardiac gene regulatory network (GRN), which ensures the precise spatio-temporal deployment of genes critical for heart formation. Alterations of the timing or spatial localisation of gene expression can have a significant impact in cardiac ontogeny and may lead to heart malformations. Hence, a better understanding of the cellular and molecular basis of congenital heart disease relies on understanding the behaviour of cardiac GRNs with precise spatiotemporal resolution. Here, we review the recent technical advances that have expanded our capacity to interrogate the cardiac GRN in zebrafish. In particular, we focus on studies utilising high-throughput technologies to systematically dissect gene expression patterns, both temporally and spatially during heart development