The implications of deficiencies of the transcription factor GATA4 have been studied by Thurisch et al. Transgenic mice showed that decreased Gata4 expression was associated with decreased expression in known cardiac genes, and in different downstream target genes in the ovary and testis, affecting the function and integrity of the gonads. These findings have implications for patients with inherited GATA4 deficiency. Journal of Molecular Endocrinology, DOI: 10.1677/JME-09-0030