title: Mesp1 expression is the earliest sign of cardiovascular development.
abstract: Understanding the molecular mechanism leading to formation of the heart and vasculature during embryogenesis is critically important because malformation of the cardiovascular system is the most frequently occurring type of birth defect. While the hearts of all vertebrates are derived from bilateral paired fields of primary mesodermal cells that are specified to the cardiac lineage during gastrulation, the mechanism for lineage restriction, and the origin of the myocardium and endocardium have not been defined. Recently, we found that a transcription factor, Mesp1, is expressed in almost all precursors of the cardiovascular system and plays an essential role in cardiac morphogenesis. Mesp1 may play a key role in the early specification for cardiac precursor cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatric Cardiology, The Heart Institute of Japan, Tokyo Women's Medical University, 8-1, Kawada-cho, Shinjuku-ku, 162-8666, Tokyo, Japan. saga@nihs.go.jp
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Saga
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kitajima
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Miyagawa-Tomita
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000943:Antigens, Differentiation / Q000235:genetics*; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D015415:Biomarkers; D005260:Female; D005318:Fetal Heart / Q000196:embryology*; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D008648:Mesoderm / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D011247:Pregnancy
chemical_list: D000943:Antigens, Differentiation; D051792:Basic Helix-Loop-Helix Proteins; D015415:Biomarkers; D008565:Membrane Proteins; C000589015:MESP1 protein, human; C101538:Mesp1 protein, mouse; C107407:Mesp2 protein, mouse