Source: Medical College of Wisconsin
Date: May 16, 2008
Summary:
The absence of two proteins in mammalian embryos prevents the development of a healthy heart, a new study by researchers at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, has found. This is the first study that has successfully identified the factors responsible for the onset of heart formation in the mammalian embryo. Until now, no single mutation had been identified that was thought to be responsible for blocking proper development of the heart in mammalian embryos. The identification of these major developmental switches will allow researchers to unravel the fundamental mechanisms that define heart cell formation.
