The heart develops from splanchnic mesoderm and is first evident at 18 days as two heart tubes that fuse to form a single endocardial heart tube. By 22-23 days the heart tube begins beating. It then loops back on itself to form a U-shaped tube. Partitioning of the common atrium, ventricle, and outflow tracts occurs between 4-5 weeks. This results in separation of the heart into four chambers and defines the connections between the chambers and major blood vessels.