Although normal coronary artery embryogenesis is well described in the literature, little is known about the development of coronary vessels in abnormal hearts.

We used an animal model of retinoic acid (RA)–evoked outflow tract malformations (e.g., double outlet right ventricle [DORV], transposition of the great arteries [TGA], and common truncus arteriosus [CTA]) to study the embryogenesis of coronary arteries using endothelial cell markers (anti‐PECAM‐1 antibodies and Griffonia simplicifolia I (GSI) lectin). These markers were applied to serial sections of staged mouse hearts to demonstrate the location of coronary artery primordia.

In malformations with a dextropositioned aorta, the shape of the peritruncal plexus, from which the coronary arteries develop, differed from that of control hearts. This difference in the shape of the early capillary plexus in the control and RA‐treated hearts depends on the position of the aorta relative to the pulmonary trunk. In both normal and RA‐treated hearts, there are several capillary penetrations to each aortic sinus facing the pulmonary trunk, but eventually only 1 coronary artery establishes patency with 1 aortic sinus.

The abnormal location of the vessel primordia induces defective courses of coronary arteries; creates fistulas, a single coronary artery, and dilated vessel lumens; and leaves certain areas of the heart devoid of coronary artery branches. RA‐evoked heart malformations may be a useful model for elucidating abnormal patterns of coronary artery development and may shed some light on the angiogenesis of coronary artery formation. Birth Defects Research (Part A), 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.