failure of the lateral body wall folds (a combination of mesoderm and ectoderm arising on each side of the embryo) to progress ventrally and meet in the midline and/or fuse to close the ventral body wall; normally, this closure is aided by growth of the head and tail folds that cause the embryo to curve into the fetal position and is complete except in the region of the connecting stalk (future umbilical cord); if closure fails, ventral body wall defects occur in the thorax, abdomen, and pelvis and involve the heart (ectopia cordis), abdominal viscera (gastroschisis), and/or urogenital organs (bladder or cloacal exstrophy), depending upon the location and size of the abnormality
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC-BY-4.0)
The contents of this gene set are protected by copyright (c) 2004-2026 Broad Institute, Inc., Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
and Regents of the University of California, subject to the terms and conditions of the
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
