The roles of GATA-4, -5 and -6 in vertebrate heart development.
The transcription factors GATA-4, -5 and -6 are expressed very early in heart tissue. Essential GATA sites have been detected in several cardiac genes and the cardiac GATA factors interact with a wide variety of cofactors which synergistically increase gene expression. These multi-protein transcriptional complexes confer promoter-specificity on the GATA factors and also on the more broadly expressed cofactors. Here we summarise the data on these interactions and represent the conclusions as a GATA factor-based genetic regulatory network for the heart. Of the three cardiac GATAs, GATA-4 is by far the most extensively studied, however, loss-of-function data question its presumed dominance during heart development as opposed to hypertrophy.
Peterkin
Tessa
T
Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, John Radcliffe Hospital, Headington, Oxford OX3 9DS.
Gibson
Abigail
A
Loose
Matthew
M
Patient
Roger
R
D000818:Animals; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D050991:GATA4 Transcription Factor; D050992:GATA5 Transcription Factor; D050993:GATA6 Transcription Factor; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D006321:Heart / Q000254:growth & development*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D014714:Vertebrates / Q000254:growth & development*
D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D050991:GATA4 Transcription Factor; D050992:GATA5 Transcription Factor; D050993:GATA6 Transcription Factor; D014157:Transcription Factors