Tempting fate: BMP signals for cardiac morphogenesis

• Published in: Cytokine & growth factor reviews Vol. 14; no. 1; pp. 1 - 4
• Main Authors: Schneider, Michael D, Gaussin, Vinciane, Lyons, Karen M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2003
• Subjects: ALK3; Animals; Bone Morphogenetic Protein Receptors; Bone morphogenetic proteins; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins - genetics; Bone Morphogenetic Proteins - metabolism; Cre/lox; Gene Targeting; Heart - growth & development; Morphogenesis; Mouse genetics; Receptors; Receptors, Growth Factor - genetics; Receptors, Growth Factor - metabolism; Signal Transduction - physiology; Transforming growth factor-beta; Bone morphogenetic proteins; Transforming growth factor-beta; Receptors; Cre/lox; ALK3; Mouse genetics
• ISSN: 1359-6101
• DOI: 10.1016/S1359-6101(02)00053-9

Heart muscle cell specification (cardiac myogenesis) and creating the four-chambered heart (cardiac morphogenesis) are subject to regulation, in certain model organisms, by bone morphogenetic proteins and their receptors. Extrapolation to mammals from organisms that develop outside the mother (flies, fish, frogs, and avians) has been confounded by very early lethality—at gastrulation—of many null alleles needed to prove cause–effect relations in this pathway. Here, we describe the use of lineage- or compartment-restricted null alleles as well as hypomorphic alleles, which circumvent these limitations and pinpoint novel essential functions for the bone morphogenetic protein cascade in mammalian cardiac development.