Open Access

REVIEW

Precision Pharmacology in Pediatric Congenital Heart Disease: Gene Editing and Organoid Models Addressing Developmental Challenges

Jun He¹, Jianli Luo¹, Yanling Wang^1,*, Dai Zhou^1,*, Shuanglin Xiang^2,*

1 Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Hereditary Birth Defects Prevention and Control, Changsha Hospital for Maternal & Child Health Care Affiliated to Hunan Normal University, Changsha, 410007, China
2 College of Life Science, Hunan Normal University, Changsha, 410081, China

* Corresponding Authors: Yanling Wang. Email: ; Dai Zhou. Email: ; Shuanglin Xiang. Email:

(This article belongs to the Special Issue: Novel Methods and Techniques for the Management of Congenital Heart Disease)

Congenital Heart Disease 2025, 20(5), 613-623. https://doi.org/10.32604/chd.2025.071773

Received 12 August 2025; Accepted 24 November 2025; Issue published 30 November 2025

Abstract

Pediatric congenital heart disease (CHD) pharmacotherapy faces three fundamental barriers: developmental pharmacokinetic complexity, anatomic-genetic heterogeneity, and evidence chain gaps. Traditional agents exhibit critical limitations: digoxin’s narrow therapeutic index (0.5–0.9 ng/mL) is exacerbated by ABCB1 mutations (toxicity risk increases 4.1-fold), furosemide efficacy declines by 35% in neonates due to NKCC2 immaturity, and β-blocker responses vary by CYP2D6 polymorphisms (poor metabolizers require 50–75% dose reduction). Novel strategies demonstrate transformative potential—CRISPR editing achieves 81% reversal of BMPR2-associated pulmonary vascular remodeling, metabolically matured cardiac organoids replicate adult myocardial energy metabolism for drug screening, and SGLT2 inhibitors activate triple mechanisms (calcium overload mitigation, mitophagy, fibrosis reversal). However, clinical translation requires overcoming developmental barriers: age-dependent enzyme expression (infant CYP2D6 = 30–60% adult activity), post-Fontan hepatotoxicity (bosentan trough concentrations elevates 1.8-fold), and AI model limitations (32% error in complex CHD). Future integration of placental transfer models, disease-specific organoids, and multi-omics mapping of FOXO/CRIM1 pathways will shift paradigms from symptom control to curative repair.

---

Keywords

---