Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2026
11:25
Quantitative Analysis of Protein Expression to Study Lineage Specification in Mouse Preimplantation Embryos
Published on: February 22, 2016
Postimplantation development of mouse blastocysts with two separate inner cell masses
W Ozdzeński1, E Szczesny, A K Tarkowski
1Department of Embryology, University of Warsaw, Poland.
Anatomy and Embryology
|May 1, 1997
Summary
Creating double inner cell masses (ICMs) in blastocysts via electrofusion resulted in twin egg cylinders. Cylinder development depended on ectoplacental cone orientation, with antimesometrial cones hindering growth.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Embryology
- Reproductive science
Background:
- The inner cell mass (ICM) of a blastocyst forms the embryo proper.
- Understanding ICM development is crucial for reproductive technologies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the developmental potential of blastocysts with double inner cell masses (ICMs).
- To analyze the morphology and development of twin egg cylinders derived from fused blastocysts.
Main Methods:
- Production of blastocysts with double ICMs through electrofusion of two blastocysts.
- Transplantation of fused blastocysts into pseudopregnant recipients.
- Histological examination on day 8 and whole embryo inspection on days 11-12 of gestation.
Main Results:
- Most double-ICM blastocysts developed into two separate egg cylinders within a common yolk sac.
- Cylinders often lacked embryonic membranes, and ectoplacental cones showed variable orientation.
- Antimesometrially oriented ectoplacental cones were associated with impaired cylinder development.
- In twin embryo sets, developmental synchrony varied, with one twin often more advanced.
Conclusions:
- Double ICMs can initiate development into twin egg cylinders.
- Ectoplacental cone orientation significantly influences embryonic development and survival.
- The position of the developing embryo within the uterine environment is critical for normal development.
Related Concept Videos
01:33Cleavage 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.
01:10Zygotic 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...