INDEX

0
 INTRODUCTION

The structures and the relationships among the various parts of a mature plant
or animal are usually better understood if the successive developmental stages
are studied. Thus, morphologists have traditionally been interested in the
study of embryos and their developmental patterns—i.e., the science of
embryology.

Human embryonic development, or human embryogenesis, refers to the

development and formation of the human embryo. It is characterised by the
process of cell division and cellular differentiation of the embryo that
occurs during the early stages of development. In biological terms, the
development of the human body entails growth from a one-celled zygote
to an adult human being. The building of the human embryo is a
biological process of transcendent complexity. At the developmental
horizon between embryogenesis and the foetal period, the majority of the
cellular and molecular work of the developmental biology is done. The rest –
the subject matter of obstetrics – is mostly about growing larger. Much of
what we know about human embryogenesis we have learned from
embryogenesis of other organisms, but there is a wealth of knowledge,
specific to the human process, available from the traces left by variations in
embryogenesis among living humans with developmental anomalies, and twins
and chimeras. By learning how some people have done their
embryogenesis differently, we can learn much about the more usual
process. The formation of the human embryo is a complex system of
processes of dividing and differentiating cells, very much like every other kind
of embryogenesis, but not exactly like any other kind we know anything about.

1
Development typically begins in animals with the cleavage, or division, of the
fertilized egg (zygote) to form a hollow ball of cells called the blastula; the
blastula then develops into a hollow cuplike body of two layers of cells, the
gastrula, from which the embryo ultimately is formed. At one time, the
techniques available to embryologists enabled them to study only whole
embryos at different developmental stages. The science of experimental
embryology began during the first half of the 20th century, when microsurgical
techniques became available either for the removal and study of certain
structures from tiny embryos or for their transplantation to other regions of
the embryo.

2
 EMBRYOGENESIS IN HUMAN

Embryo, the early developmental stage of an animal while it is in the egg

or within the uterus of the mother. In humans the term is applied to the
unborn child until the end of the seventh week following conception;
from the eighth week the unborn child is called a foetus.

In organisms that reproduce sexually, the union of an ovum with a sperm

results in a zygote, or fertilized egg, which undergoes a series of divisions
called cleavages as it passes down the fallopian tube. After several
cleavages have taken place, the cells form a hollow ball called a blastula.
In most mammals the blastula attaches itself to the uterine lining, thus
stimulating the formation of a placenta, which will transfer nutrients from
the mother to the growing embryo. In lower animals the embryo is
nourished by the yolk.

DEVELOPMENT OF BLASTULA

About 6 days after fertilization, the blastocyst attaches to the lining of the
uterus, usually near the top. This process, called implantation, is
completed by day 9 or 10. The wall of the blastocyst is one cell thick
except in one area, where it is three to four cells thick. The inner cells in
the thickened area develop into the embryo, and the outer cells burrow
into the wall of the uterus and develop into the placenta. The placenta
produces several hormones that help maintain the pregnancy. For
example, the placenta produces human placental lactogen (hPL) and also
human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), which prevents the ovaries from
3
releasing eggs and stimulates the ovaries to produce estrogens and
progesterone continuously. In the later phase of pregnancy, a hormone
called relaxin is also secreted by the ovary. The hCG, hPL and relaxin are
produced in women only during pregnancy. Also during pregnancy the
levels of other hormones like estrogens, progestogens, cortisol, prolactin,
thyroxin, etc are increased several folds in the maternal blood. Increased
production of these hormones is essential for supporting the foetal
growth, metabolic changes in the mother and maintenance of pregnancy.
The placenta also carries oxygen and nutrients from mother to foetus and
waste materials from foetus to mother.

Some of the cells from the placenta develop into an outer layer of
membranes (chorion) around the developing blastocyst. Other cells
develop into an inner layer of membranes (amnion), which form the
amniotic sac. When the sac is formed (by about day 10 to 12), the
blastocyst is considered an embryo. The amniotic sac fills with a clear
liquid (amniotic fluid) and expands to envelop the developing embryo,
which floats within it.

DEVELOPMENT OF GASTRULA

Late in the second week after fertilization, gastrulation occurs when a

blastula, made up of one layer, folds inward and enlarges to create a
gastrula. A gastrula has 3 germ layers--the ectoderm, the mesoderm, and
the endoderm. Some of the ectoderm cells from the blastula collapse
inward and form the endoderm. The final phase of gastrulation is the
formation of the primitive gut that will eventually develop into the

4
gastrointestinal tract. A tiny hole, called a blastopore, develops in one
side of the embryo. The blastopore deepens and becomes the anus. The
blastopore continues to tunnel through the embryo to the other side,
where it forms an opening that will become the mouth. Whether this
blastopore develops into a mouth or an anus determines whether the
organism is a protostome or a deuterostome. With a functioning digestive
tube, gastrulation is now complete. Each of the three germ layers of the
embryo will eventually give rise to different cells, tissues, and organs that
make up the entire organism. For example, the inner layer (the
endoderm) will eventually form cells of many internal glands and organs,
including the lungs, intestines, thyroid, pancreas, and bladder. The middle
layer (the mesoderm) will form cells of the heart, blood, bones, muscles,
and kidneys. The outer layer (the ectoderm) will form cells of the
epidermis, nervous system, eyes, inner ears, and many connective
tissues.

By the process of gastrulation, the embryo differentiates into three types

of tissue:

 The ECTODERM:-producing the skin and nervous system; the

mesoderm, from which develop connective tissues, the circulatory
system, muscles, and bones; and the endoderm, which forms the
digestive system, lungs, and urinary system.

5
  The MESODERM: - Mesodermal cells migrate from the surface of
the embryo to fill the space between the other two tissues through
an elongated depression known as the primitive streak.

 The ECTODERM: - As the embryo develops, the cell layers fold over
so that the endoderm forms a long tube surrounded by mesoderm,
with an ectodermal layer around the whole.

Nutrients pass from the placenta through the umbilical cord, and the
amnion, a fluid-filled membrane, surrounds and protects the embryo. The
division of the body into head and trunk becomes apparent, and the
brain, spinal cord, and internal organs begin to develop. All of these
changes are completed early in embryonic development, by about the
fourth week, in humans. Between the head and the heart, a series of
branchial arches, cartilaginous structures that support the gills of fishes
and larval amphibians, begin to form. In higher vertebrates these
structures form part of the jaw and ear. Limb buds also appear, and by
the end of the embryonic stage, the embryo is distinguishable as a
representative of its species.

6
 CONCLUSION

Many of the most important and least understood stages of a human embryo’s
development take place during the first 21 days of pregnancy before the
mother even knows she’s pregnant and while the embryo is still incredibly
small. At 21-days-old, a human embryo is less than two millimetres long or
roughly the size of the circle at the end of this sentence. But even at 21 days,
the embryo is much more than just a simple ball of primitive cells. Its gender
and basic body plan — top and bottom, front and back, left and right — are
already established and the developmental future of every cell in the embryo
is already set. It’s an amazing journey. And it all starts with a single cell.

Knowing more about what happens to a human embryo during its perilous
journey from fertilization to gastrulation could help researchers learn what
causes birth defects and perhaps even find ways to prevent or correct them.
Research to understand how embryos develop could benefit the health of
adults, as well. Scientists are only starting to understand how mistakes during
embryogenesis can have life-long consequences in the form of diseases and
disorders like cancer, congenital heart defects, and Down syndrome that begin
when something goes wrong during the embryo’s first 21 days.

7
 BIBLIOGRAPHY

 NCERT Textbook in Biology Class 12

 NCERT Textbook in Biology Class 10
 https://academic.oup.com/journals
 https://www.msdmanuals.com
 https://bio.libretexts.org/
 http://www.wikipedia.org/