GATA4 and GATA5 are essential for heart and liver development in Xenopus embryos

BACKGROUND: GATA factors 4/5/6 have been implicated in the development of the heart and endodermal derivatives in vertebrates. Work in zebrafish has indicated that GATA5 is required for normal development earlier than GATA4/6. However, the GATA5 knockout mouse has no apparent embryonic phenotype, thereby questioning the importance of the gene for vertebrate development. RESULTS: In this study we show that in Xenopus embryos GATA5 is essential for early development of heart and liver precursors. In addition, we have found that in Xenopus embryos GATA4 is important for development of heart and liver primordia following their specification, and that in this role it might interact with GATA6. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that GATA5 acts earlier than GATA4 to regulate development of heart and liver precursors, and indicate that one early direct target of GATA5 is homeobox gene Hex.