Transcriptional regulation of vertebrate cardiac morphogenesis.
Transcription factors can regulate the expression of other genes in a tissue-specific and quantitative manner and are thus major regulators of embryonic developmental processes. Several transcription factors that regulate cardiac genes specifically have been described, and the recent discovery that dominant inherited transcription factor mutations cause congenital heart defects in humans has brought direct medical relevance to the study of cardiac transcription factors in heart development. Although this field of study is extensive, several major gaps in our knowledge of the transcriptional control of heart development still exist. This review will concentrate on recent developments in the field of cardiac transcription factors and their roles in heart formation.
Bruneau
Benoit G
BG
Division of Cardiovascular Research and Programme in Developmental Biology, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5G 1X8. bbruneau@sickkids.ca.
D000818:Animals; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D018507:Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental / Q000502:physiology*; D006321:Heart / Q000196:embryology*; D006329:Heart Conduction System / Q000196:embryology; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000209:etiology; D006801:Humans; D051379:Mice; D009024:Morphogenesis; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism*; D014981:Xenopus; D015027:Zebrafish
D014157:Transcription Factors