BIO380 - Human Development
Lecture 1 - Introduction to Developmental Biology (Tuesday, Jan 6th)
*Assignments mimic final/term test questions*
Main Topics
-​ Gametogenesis
-​ Fertilization
-​ Stem cells
-​ Establishment of the embryonic body plan
-​ Mammalian gastrulation
-​ Neural tube formation and patterning
-​ Ecodermal placodes and the epidermis
-​ Paraxial mesoderm
-​ Intermediate and lateral plate mesoderm
-​ Limb development
-​ Development and disease
-​ Journal clubs: presentations of primary research articles (testable, prof presents an
article)
Developmental biology
-​ Starts as an egg and continues to develop into so much more
-​ 120+ neuron cell types in our eyes (so much diversity)
-​ Development answers how things develop (how genes determine)
Human development
-​ Begins when oocyte (ovum) from female is fertilized by sperm (male)
1.​ Gametogenesis: generation of oocytes and sperm
2.​ Gametes must be released from gonads and make their way to uterine tube
3.​ Fertilized ovum must enter uterus to be implanted there
-​ Transformation of fertilized oocyte into multicellular human being
-​ Cell division, cell migration, cell rearrangement, differentiation, programmed cell
death, growth.
-​ Post-gasterization, it's hard to tell humans from other mammals
-​ Development doesn't just stop in the womb/at birth, it continues till death (ex: hair, skin,
nail regrowth)
Developmental periods
-​ Divides human development into prenatal (before birth) and postnatal.
Importance of human development
-​ Understand how sometimes stuff goes wrong and why abnormalities occur
-​ Genetic mutations and environmental effects on humans
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Gain insight into stem cell therapy
Progression of other diseases (cancer)
Modal organism
-​ Exploited for research purposes
-​ Main 6 examples: Chicken, worm, fruit fly, zebra fish, mouse, frog (main 4)
-​ Mouse pros: mice have a litter of progeny, know a lot about systems, closest to humans,
genomes have been sequenced (genetics can be mutated/manipulated). Main model.
-​ Mouse con: they lack a lot of behaviour of humans, unable to do a multi-generational
cross (longer gestational period), complex organisms (secondary/primary factors),
gestation is in utero (hard to track pregestational)