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Related Concept Videos

Gastrulation01:56

Gastrulation

Gastrulation establishes the three primary tissues of an embryo: the ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm. This developmental process relies on a series of intricate cellular movements, which in humans transforms a flat, “bilaminar disc” composed of two cell sheets into a three-tiered structure. In the resulting embryo, the endoderm serves as the bottom layer, and stacked directly above it is the intermediate mesoderm, and then the uppermost ectoderm. Respectively, these tissue strata will form...
Cleavage and Blastulation01:33

Cleavage and Blastulation

After a large-single-celled zygote is produced via fertilization, the process of cleavage occurs while zygotes travel through the uterine tube. Cleavage is a mitotic cell division that does not result in growth. With each round of successive cell division, daughter cells get increasingly smaller.
Neurulation01:30

Neurulation

Neurulation is the embryological process which forms the precursors of the central nervous system and occurs after gastrulation has established the three primary cell layers of the embryo: ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm. In humans, the majority of this system is formed via primary neurulation, in which the central portion of the ectoderm—originally appearing as a flat sheet of cells—folds upwards and inwards, sealing off to form a hollow neural tube. As development proceeds, the anterior...
Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation01:10

Zygotic Development And Stem Cell Formation

The development of all multicellular organisms starts with the fusion of haploid cells called sperm and egg to form a diploid zygote. A zygote is a totipotent cell that can develop into a complete organism. The zygote undergoes cell division or cleavage to form an 8-cell mass. Until this stage, the cells are spherical, loosely attached, and remain totipotent. Totipotent cells are capable of developing both the embryonic and the extraembryonic tissues. However, as they continue to divide, they...
Determination01:51

Determination

During embryogenesis, cells become progressively committed to different fates through a two-step process: specification followed by determination. Specification is demonstrated by removing a segment of an early embryo, “neutrally” culturing the tissue in vitro—for example, in a petri dish with simple medium—and then observing the derivatives. If the cultured region gives rise to cell types that it would normally generate in the embryo, this means that it is specified. In contrast, determination...
Morphogenesis02:19

Morphogenesis

Plant morphogenesis—the development of a plant’s form and structure—involves several overlapping developmental processes, including growth and cell differentiation. Precursor cells differentiate into specific cell types, which are organized into the tissues and organ systems that make up the functional plant.

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Updated: May 20, 2026

Generation of Naïve Blastoderm Explants from Zebrafish Embryos
07:21

Generation of Naïve Blastoderm Explants from Zebrafish Embryos

Published on: July 30, 2021

Gastrulation: making and shaping germ layers.

Lila Solnica-Krezel1, Diane S Sepich

  • 1Department of Developmental Biology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri 63110, USA. solnical@wustl.edu

Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology
|July 19, 2012
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Gastrulation shapes animal body plans through four key movements: emboly, epiboly, convergence, and extension. These movements rely on cell behaviors coordinated by cytoskeletal dynamics and molecular signaling.

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Biology
  • Cell Biology
  • Evolutionary Biology

Background:

  • Gastrulation is a critical stage in animal embryogenesis, establishing the three primary germ layers and the basic body plan.
  • It involves complex cellular rearrangements and morphogenetic movements essential for organ development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the fundamental morphogenetic movements of gastrulation.
  • To elucidate the cellular behaviors and molecular mechanisms driving these movements.
  • To highlight the coordination of gastrulation with embryonic polarity.

Main Methods:

  • Review of recent literature on gastrulation.
  • Analysis of conserved morphogenetic movements (emboly, epiboly, convergence, extension).
  • Examination of underlying cell behaviors (shape changes, migration, intercalation, division).

Main Results:

  • Gastrulation involves four conserved morphogenetic movements: emboly, epiboly, convergence, and extension.
  • These movements are driven by diverse cell behaviors, including shape changes, migration, and intercalation.
  • Actomyosin cytoskeletal dynamics, differential cell adhesion, and signaling pathways guide gastrulation.

Conclusions:

  • Gastrulation is a highly orchestrated process involving coordinated cell behaviors and molecular signaling.
  • Understanding gastrulation mechanisms is key to comprehending animal development and evolution.
  • The interplay of cytoskeletal dynamics and signaling pathways ensures proper body plan formation.