when is the heart developed in a fetus
Heart development Heart development refers to the prenatal development of the human heart. This begins with the formation of two endocardial tubes which merge to form the tubular heart, also called the primitive heart tube, that loops and septates into the four chambers and paired arterial trunks that form the adult heart. The heart is the first functional organ in vertebrate embryos, and in the human, beats spontaneously by week 4 of development.[2]
Ductus arteriosus In the developing fetus, the ductus arteriosus, also called the ductus Botalli, is a blood vessel connecting the main pulmonary artery to the proximal descending aorta. It allows most of the blood from the right ventricle to bypass the fetus's fluid-filled non-functioning lungs. Upon closure at birth, it becomes the ligamentum arteriosum. There are two other fetal shunts, the ductus venosus and the foramen ovale.