In embryos,
the trabeculae
are thought to
diffuse oxygen
and nutrients
throughout
heart tissue.18 March/April 2021
GRAPHICAARTIS/GETTY^ IMAGES^ (DAVINCI^ SKETCH);SUSUMUNISHINAGA/SCIENCESOURCE(TRABECULAE)Science
6
// BY CAROLINE DELBERT //R
ESEARCHERS FINALLY UNDERSTAND THE FUNC-
tion of a heart feature first described by
Leonardo da Vinci 500 years ago. To find the
answer, scientists used fractal theory, MRIs,
and a lot of computational elbow grease to
shed light on muscular structures called tra-
beculae. Their study, published in Nature,
found this branching, lacy muscle layer plays a part
in identifying a patient’s risk of heart disease.
The trabeculae cover the inner surfaces of
the heart and were thought to be a remnant of
embryonic development. Leonardo da Vinci drew
detailed pictures of the fine, snowf lake-like tra-
beculae after dissecting and examining a heart.
“He was quite intrigued by them and he thought
they warmed the blood,” says Declan O’Regan,
PhD, a clinical scientist and radiologist at Impe-
rial College London in the U.K., who worked on
the study.
The broad international research team tapped
a special resource: the UK Biobank, a database of
more than 500,000 adult volunteers (O’Regan and
his team analyzed a subset of 18,000 people) who
have had genetic testing, MRI scans, and otherAfter 500 Years, a Mathematical
Principle Has Unlocked Leonardo
da Vinci’s Human Heart Mystery