Molecular insights into cardiac development

Recent discoveries have led to a greater appreciation of the diverse mechanisms that underlie cardiac morphogenesis. Genetic strategies (primarily gene targeting approaches in mice) have significantly broadened research in cardiovascular developmental biology by illuminating new pathways involved in heart development and by allowing the genetic evaluation of pathways that have previously been implicated in these events. Advances have also been made using biochemical and cell- and tissue-based approaches. This review summarizes the author's interpretation of current trends in the effort to understand the molecular basis of cardiac-development, with an emphasis on insights obtained from genetic models.