Spatially resolved single-cell atlas reveals the macroevolutionary trajectory of animal hearts
Animal hearts display diverse anatomical structures during adaptive evolution. Here, we present a multi-omics atlas of adult hearts from 27 species across chordates, arthropods, and mollusks. Joint analysis indicates that Bilateria hearts share a core gene repertoire, taking a stepwise "add-on" approach as a universal evolutionary strategy. The proto-heart is populated by key cell types, including cardiomyocytes, fibroblasts, endothelial, and neural cells, which maintained core signatures while evolving with shifts in living environments and corresponding adaptations in the cardiovascular system. Additionally, we reveal an evolutionarily conserved cardiomyocyte state dynamic potentially linked to cardiac development and stress responses. Finally, we identify a common molecular program underpinning chamber evolution from a ventricular foundation. Together, this work establishes a resource for understanding the intrinsic mechanisms of heart evolution.
Authors
- Shanshan Pan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5977-4914)
- Yang Zhao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0856-2724)
- Peiyan Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1368-3632)
- Zhe Qu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3919-7368)
- Shanshan Lian (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0088-8826)
- Long Zhao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2691-7055)
- P. F. Zhang
- Ying Su (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4643-917X)
- Yating Qin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8024-3210)
- Yuru Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4377-7616)
- Junjie Shi
- Guangyi Fan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7365-1590)
- F Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5032-6039)
- Ying Gu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7822-0570)
- C. Geoffrey Burns (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5812-6621)
- Yue Pang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9869-2863)
- Caroline E. Burns (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1565-7489)
- Jianxun Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3731-6514)
- Ji‐Feng Fei (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2426-9402)
- Lisui Bao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8196-3375)
- Shuaiqi Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3238-1296)
- Wentao Han (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1423-3975)
- Xin Yu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8718-0715)
- Tao Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4211-5183)
- Lingling Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9161-4387)
- Wei Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6722-2424)
- Jing Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7974-3090)
- Shi Wang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9571-9864)
- Xi Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4638-3997)
- Xun Xu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5338-5173)
- Hongyan Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2191-1247)
- Wenbin Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2317-601X)
- Ying Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8931-9656)
- Zhenmin Bao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6126-0509)
- Ruihua Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8672-9673)
- Meina Lu
- Yun Cao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-0618-4015)
- Robert G. Kelly (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4357-0073)
- Ning Tan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6185-7126)
- Li Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-4636-9487)
- Yuli Li (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8112-1730)
- Qun Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5772-4929)
- Lidong Guo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2520-4416)
- Xiawei Liu
- Naina Hu
- Runyi Zhang
- Xin Dang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0000-2033-5877)
- Qiuyun Song
- Yufeng Li
- Jiaxin Luo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-8709-9458)
- Xiaomei Chen
- Rui Li
- Jing Chen
- Yue Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-7173-8045)
- Lei Jiang
- Rui Li
- Yuehuan Zhang
- Xiaomei Chen
- Silin Pan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7593-7779)
- Mengqi Zhang
Institutions
- BGI Group (China) (CN)
- Qingdao University (CN)
- University of Copenhagen (DK)
- Ministry of Education (NZ)
- Boston Children's Hospital (US)
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR)
- Liaoning Normal University (CN)
- Aix-Marseille Université (FR)
- Institute of Oceanology (CN)
- South China Sea Institute Of Oceanology (CN)
- Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory (Guangzhou) (CN)
- Qingdao Academy of Intelligent Industries (CN)
- Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology (CN)
- Hangzhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CN)
- Guangdong Academy of Medical Sciences (CN)
- China National GeneBank (CN)
- Guangdong Provincial People's Hospital (CN)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Qingdao Women and Children's Hospital (CN)
- BGI Research (CN)
- BGI Research, Sanya (CN)
- Southern Medical University (CN)
- Ocean University of China (CN)
- Hainan Tropical Ocean University (CN)
- College of Marin (US)
- South China University of Technology (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Science
- Published
- 2026-07-23
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adw0855
- Primary Topic
- Congenital heart defects research
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00