page_title: Heart development
section_title: Atria
hierarchical_section_title: Heart development / Heart chambers / Atria
context_page_description: Heart development refers to the prenatal development of the heart. This begins with the formation of two endocardial tubes which merge to form the tubular heart, also called the primitive heart tube. The heart is the first functional organ in vertebrate embryos, and in the human, beats spontaneously by week 4 of development.
  The tubular heart quickly differentiates into the truncus arteriosus, bulbus cordis, primitive ventricle, primitive atrium, and the sinus venosus. The truncus arteriosus splits into the ascending aorta and the pulmonary trunk. The bulbus cordis forms part of the ventricles. The sinus venosus connects to the fetal circulation.
  The heart tube elongates on the right side, looping and becoming the first visual sign of left-right asymmetry of the body. Septa form within the atria and ventricles to separate the left and right sides of the heart.
context_section_description: At the end of the fourth week, a crest grows that leaves the cephalic part. This crest is the first part of the septum primum. The two ends of the septum extend into the interior of the endocardial cushions in the atrioventricular canal. The opening between the bottom edge of the septum primum and endocardial cushions is the ostium primum (first opening). The extensions of the upper and lower endocardial pads grow along the margin of the septum primum and close the ostium primum. Coalescence of these perforations will form the ostium secundum (second opening), which allows blood to flow freely from the right atrium to the left.
  When the right of the atrium expands due to the incorporation of the pole of the sinus, a new fold appears, called the septum secundum. At its right side it is fused with the left venous valve and the septum spurium. A free opening will then appear, called  the foramen ovale. The remains of the upper septum primum, will become the valves of the foramen ovale. The passage between the two atrial chambers consists of a long oblique slit through which blood flows from the right atrium to the left.
caption: The developing heart at day 30. The septum primum (top, middle) develops downwards to separate the initially joined primitive atrium into left and right atria.
exif: {}