This Side Up Spatial Determination in the Early Development of Animals [Hardcover]

Examines the spatial determination of cells in an embryo.During animal development the descendants of a single cell form many different tissues and organs in appropriate positions within an embryo. To do this they must recognise their position, and this book examines our knowledge of how this is done.During animal development the descendants of a single cell form many different tissues and organs in appropriate positions within an embryo. To do this they must recognise their position, and this book examines our knowledge of how this is done.This comprehensive and cogent survey examines the subject of embryonic determination, the set of processes fundamental to animal development by which cells in the early embryo acquire different developmental capabilities. Examining both the classical literature and the newer, molecular findings, the author summarizes the current state of our understanding of determination and poses key questions for the future. He begins with a consideration of how much spatial pattern is already laid down when the egg forms inside the mother, and ends just before the formation of visible organs. Within these limits he also considers evidence obtained by a variety of techniques, both experimental and biochemical, derived from the embryos of a variety of animal groups. This is a suitable text for upper level undergraduates, graduate students and researchers in developmental biology.1. Oogenesis; 2. From oocyte to zygote; 3. Does cleavage cut up a preformed spatial pattern?; 4. The limits of mosaicism in non-spiralian cleavage; 5. Cellular interations in the morula and blastula: the case of sea urchin embryos; 6. Interactions at morula and blastula in other embryos; 7. Interactions between moving cells: the case of amphibian gastrulae; 8. Spatial determination in the gastrulae of other groups; 9. Determination in embryos showing partial cleavage; 10. Patterns and mechanisms in early spatial determination; References; Index. ...an important addil“!