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Related Concept Videos

Development of Blood Vessels01:07

Development of Blood Vessels

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The development of the vascular system in a fetus is a complex and intricate process that begins as early as 15 to 16 days post-conception. This process starts outside the embryo, specifically in the mesoderm of the yolk sac, chorion, and connecting stalk. Approximately two days later, the formation of blood vessels occurs within the embryo itself.
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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.
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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...
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Fetal circulation is a unique system that facilitates the exchange of gases, nutrients, and waste products between the developing fetus and the mother. This intricate process takes place through a special organ called the placenta.
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During early development, the embryo forms two types of connective tissues— the mesenchyme and mucoid connective tissue.
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 25, 2025

Dissection and Explant Culture of Murine Allantois for the In Vitro Analysis of Allantoic Attachment
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Embryonic specializations for vertebrate placentation.

Camilla M Whittington1, Alice L Buddle1, Oliver W Griffith2

  • 1School of Life and Environmental Sciences, The University of Sydney, Heydon-Laurence A08, New South Wales 2006, Australia.

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences
|October 17, 2022
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The vertebrate placenta, crucial for embryonic development, has evolved independently across diverse species. This review highlights the varied embryonic tissues involved in placental function and evolution.

Keywords:
broodingembryonic developmentmatrotrophyparental carepregnancyviviparity

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Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Comparative Anatomy
  • Reproductive Biology

Background:

  • The placenta facilitates physiological exchange between mother and fetus.
  • It is a transient organ vital for embryonic development in various vertebrate groups.
  • Placentae are involved in transporting gases, nutrients, waste, immune molecules, and hormones.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore the diversity and commonalities of embryonic tissues in vertebrate placentation.
  • To provide insights into the convergent evolution of placental structures.
  • To suggest future research directions for understanding pregnancy evolution.

Main Methods:

  • Comparative analysis of placental structures across different vertebrate taxa.
  • Review of existing literature on vertebrate placentation and extraembryonic tissues.
  • Identification of convergent recruitment of embryonic tissues into placental function.

Main Results:

  • Placentation has evolved independently in sharks, teleost fishes, coelacanths, amphibians, squamate reptiles, and mammals.
  • Embryonic placental components include extraembryonic membranes (yolk sac, chorioallantois) or hypertrophied temporary embryonic tissues (pericardium, gill, gut, tail, fins).
  • Convergent evolution is evident in the recruitment of diverse embryonic tissues for placental roles.

Conclusions:

  • Vertebrate placentation exhibits remarkable diversity in embryonic tissue origins and structure.
  • Understanding these diverse embryonic tissues is key to unraveling the evolution of pregnancy.
  • Further studies are needed to elucidate the functional and evolutionary aspects of placentation across vertebrates.