Cardiac troponins are molecules essential for heart muscle contraction and are commonly used as biomarkers to detect heart damage when they appear in the bloodstream. It’s well known that levels of cardiac troponins are elevated at birth, but the reasons behind this aren’t fully understood. Interestingly, these elevated levels seem to be normal in healthy newborns. Still, even moderate amounts in the blood may reflect important cellular processes happening in the heart. Gaining a clearer understanding of when and why these molecules appear in circulation will help us better interpret what their presence means for infant heart health.
Find this paper at the American Journal of Physiology and on Pubmed.