Early Foetal Development Flashcards
How do you measure Fertilisation age?
measured from the time of fertilization (assumed to be +1 day from last ovulation)
difficult to know time of fertilization exactly (unless IVF)
How do you measure Gestational Age?
Determined by fertilization date (+14 days) if known, or early obstetric ultrasound and comparison to embryo size charts.
Calculated from the time of the beginning of the last menstrual period
How do you calculate the Carnegie stage?
23 stages of embryo development based on embryo features not time
Allows comparison of developmental rates between species
Covers the window of 0-60 days fertilization age in humans
What are the periods of the first Trimester?
Embryogenic stage
Embryonic stage
Which period forms the second & third trimester?
Fetal stage
What happens in the embryogenic stage?
14-16 days post-fertilization):
establishing the early embryo from the fertilized oocyte
Determining two populations of cells: pluripotent embryonic cells (contribute to fetus)
Extraembryonic cells (contribute to the support structures eg placenta
What happens in the Embryonic stage?
Establishment of the Germ layers & differentiation of tissue types.
Establishment of the body plan
What happens in the Fetal stage?
Major organ systems now present
Migration of some organ systems to final location
Extensive growth and acquisition of fetal viability (survival outside the womb)
What happens in the first few days of life?
Ovulated oocyte fertilised by sperm, forms zygote.
Zygote undergoes a series of cleavage divisions, giving a 2, 4 ,8 (cleavage embryos).
8 Cell embryo proceeds with further mitotic divisions giving us the Morula (16+ cells).
Morula progresses to form Blastocyst (200-300 cells).
What is happening genetically at the 4 -8 cell stage?
Embryo is dependent on maternal mRNAs and proteins to get through the first divisions
These mRNA and proteins are synthesized and stored during oocyte development (i.e. pre-ovulation)
Failure to synthesise, store or interpret these mRNAs and proteins during oogenesis can impair embryonic development.
What happens in the Maternal to zygotic transition?
Transcription of embryonic genes (zygotic genome activation)
Increased protein synthesis
Organelle (mitochondria, Golgi) maturation
What happens during compaction?
Around the 8-cell stage or later:
Outer cells become pressed against zona
Change from spherical to wedge-shaped.
Outer cells connect to each other through tight gap junctions and desmosomes
Forms barrier to diffusion between inner and outer embryo
Outer cells become polarised
What cell types are created by compaction?
Inner cell & outer cell. Outer cells form shell of blastocyst, inner cells form clump at inner blastocyst
What is the role of the Zone Pellucida?
Hard protein shell inhibiting polyspermy and protects early embryo
What do the inner cell mass in the blastocyst give rise to?
Pluripotent embryonic cells that will contribute to the final organism
What do the outer cells (Trophoectoderm) in the blastocyst give rise to ?
Extra-embryonic cells that contribute to the extraembryonic structures that support development
What is the Blastocoel?
Fluid-filled cavity formed
osmotically by
trophoblast pumping
Na+ ions into cavity
What happens in Hatching?
Hatching (day 5-6):
To implant the blastocyst must escape zona pellucida.
Enzymatic digestion
Cellular contractions
What happens 7-9 days post implantation in the Trophectoderm lineage?
Trophoectoderm lineage separates further:
trophoblast cells fuse to form syncitiotrophoblast
Syncitiotrophoblast invasion destroys local maternal cells in the endometrium
Creates interface between embryo and maternal blood supply
cytotrophoblast cells remain individual to provide source of syncitiotrophoblast cells
What happens to the inner cell lineage at days 7-9?
Inner cell mass separates further into:
epiblast: from which the fetal tissues will be derived.
hypoblast: which will form the yolk sac (extraembryonic structure)
When does Bi-laminar embryonic disc formation occur?
day 12