The Hidden Unity Of Hearts Analysis

The Beat Goes On…

Make a fist. Is it possible that an organ that small is the possibility for life? The heart is made of pure muscle and although it would seem rather fragile, history has proven otherwise. It has shown its sturdiness and durability through the trial and error of the advancements in cardiology. Many things can go wrong with the heart however no matter how minuscule the problem may be, it can affect the entire heart, which in turn, would affect the entire body. The heart today is said to have evolved from the simple cells in the Porifera that pumps the water through the sponge (Zimmer), to a tube with an enlarged lump on it, to the multi-chambered pumping king we are now blessed with. Through the years it has been questioned how the heart has evolved and why, an eluding mystery we are still trying to solve. The mammalian heart is theorized to have developed to what it is today because of gene mutations. Although these gene mutations are usually beneficial, sometimes they can be detrimental and cause life threatening consequences.

Living from year to year, a specific gene sequence for an organism cannot be repeated with an exact clone millions of times. The sequence is often mutated and because of this evolution plays its role. In Carl Zimmer’s article The Hidden Unity of Hearts-the Evolution of the Human Heart, he writes about when the first heart related gene was found. In 1993, a scientist by the name of Rolf Bodmer found the single gene in fruit flies that when taken away, the heart was never developed (Zimmer). He named this gene tinman. Soon after this discovery, the Nkx gene was found and mice and had the same effect. These discoveries paved the way for scientists to find other genes that would affect the h...

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...ds a supply of its own blood to function properly. These arteries, called the coronary arteries, are responsible for this. The blockage of these arteries prevents oxygen from reach the heart tissue and leads to what is known as a heart attack.

The evolutionary development of the heart has come a long way from the singular tube to the multi-chambered complex ones that now operate in humans. Some scientists proclaim that the genetics over the years have not changed much at all. They also say that the human heart is a perfected machine that has seemed to reach the goal of its evolutionary time. However, the heart will continue to amaze us. With its constant abnormalities, gene mutations, and it’s striving for perfection, the heart will never be completely known and understood. Instead it will be an enigma, constantly dodging our rules and always providing us with life.