1) The heart develops from angioblastic tissue in the splanchnopleuric mesoderm and initially forms as a linear heart tube.
2) The heart tube loops to the right, forming the basic chambers - the truncus arteriosus, bulbous cordis, ventricle, atrium and sinus venosus.
3) Septa then develop to divide the chambers - the atrial septum forms from the septum primum, while the interventricular septum grows up from the floor of the heart tube.