Embryonic Development News and Research

RSS

Embryonic development or embryogenesis is the process by which the embryo is formed and develops. It starts with the fertilization of the ovum, egg, which, after fertilization, is then called a zygote. The zygote undergoes rapid mitotic divisions, the formation of two exact genetic replicates of the original cell, with no significant growth (a process known as cleavage) and cellular differentiation, leading to development of an embryo.

Researchers target abnormal epigenetic mechanisms involved in childhood cancers

Several childhood cancer cell types show features of immature neural cells, and there is evidence suggesting that these tumors may arise from neural crest stem cells that underwent abnormal changes during embryonic development.

20 Feb 2018

Tiny 'brains on chips' reveal mechanisms underlying brain's wrinkling process

Being born with a "tabula rasa" - a clean slate - in the case of the brain is something of a curse. Our brains are already wrinkled like walnuts by the time we are born. Babies born without these wrinkles - smooth brain syndrome - suffer from severe developmental deficiencies and their life expectancy is markedly reduced.

20 Feb 2018

CNIC researchers discover high level of plasticity among cells in regenerating zebrafish heart

Some animals, including the zebrafish, have a high capacity to regenerate tissues, allowing them to recovery fully after cardiac injury. During this process, the heart muscle cells divide to replace the damaged tissue.

11 Feb 2018

Researchers solve crystal structure for enzyme that plays key role in DNA methylation

A research team led by a biochemist at the University of California, Riverside has solved the crystal structure for an enzyme that plays a key role in DNA methylation, the process by which methyl groups are added to the DNA molecule.

7 Feb 2018

Researchers discover gene network that regulates the motor neuron development in growing embryo

UCLA researchers have discovered the inner workings of a gene network that regulates the development of spinal motor neurons in the growing chicken and mouse embryo.

2 Feb 2018

Researchers identify cause of severe genetic disease

Mutations in the p63 protein lead to a number of disorders, but none is as severe as the AEC syndrome. Scientists at Goethe University Frankfurt in collaboration with a research group from the University of Naples Federico II have now discovered that this syndrome resembles diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's or ALS more closely than it does other p63-based syndromes.

2 Feb 2018

Rockefeller scientists develop system to model Huntington’s in human embryonic stem cells

With new findings, scientists may be poised to break a long impasse in research on Huntington's disease, a fatal hereditary disorder for which there is currently no treatment.

29 Jan 2018

Scientists identify role of Mesp1 gene in earliest step of cardiovascular lineage segregation

Researchers at the Université libre de Bruxelles and University of Cambridge identified the role of key gene Mesp1 in the earliest step of cardiovascular lineage segregation. This discovery may help to better understand congenital heart defects.

27 Jan 2018

Valproic acid exposure results in characteristics linked to autism, zebrafish study shows

Exposure to a compound used to treat migraines and seizures causes characteristics associated with autism, groundbreaking research with zebrafish has demonstrated.

24 Jan 2018

Discovery may advance stem cell therapies, gene-targeting treatments for neurological diseases

New research from Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute is among the first to describe how an mRNA modification impacts the life of neural stem cells.

24 Jan 2018

Scientists identify molecular key that opens up compacted genome

News article describing the recent discovery of pax7, a protein which opens up compacted DNA for access by transcription factors.

23 Jan 2018

Identical twins share additional level of molecular similarity

An international group of researchers has discovered a new phenomenon that occurs in identical twins: independent of their identical genes, they share an additional level of molecular similarity that influences their biological characteristics.

9 Jan 2018

MGH study points toward potential strategy for treating X-linked disorders

A study from a team of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators points toward a potential strategy for treating X-linked disorders - those caused by mutations in the X chromosome - in females.

4 Jan 2018

Study shows vital role for maternally inherited gene in embryonic development

A new study indicates an essential role for a maternally inherited gene in embryonic development. The study found that zebrafish that failed to inherit specific genetic instructions from mom developed fatal defects earlier in development, even if the fish could make their own version of the gene.

18 Dec 2017

Researchers reveal previously unknown mechanism that inhibits cells' ability to develop into tumors

CANCER RESEARCH Danish researchers have just presented a previously unknown mechanism that inhibits the ability of cells to develop into cancer cells. Their findings have important implications for the understanding of how cancer starts, and how to improve the treatment of illness in the future.

15 Dec 2017

Study provides new insights into development of Sonic Hedgehog medulloblastoma

Medulloblastoma is the most common type of solid brain tumor in children. Current treatments offer limited success and may leave patients with severe neurological side effects, including psychiatric disorders, growth retardation and cognitive impairment.

13 Dec 2017

Researchers seek to understand role of novel protein in tumor metastasis

Metastasis, the process in which a tumor spreads to other parts of the body, is responsible for 90% of deaths from tumors. It is the greatest challenge to a cancer patient's survival. Metastatic spread occurs in several steps, these include that tumor cells become mobile and cross into and out of blood vessels.

8 Dec 2017

Understanding molecular mechanisms of signaling pathways to inhibit cancer invasion

The German Research Foundation has approved the renewal application for the Collaborative Research Center 850 "Control of Cell Motility in Morphogenesis, Cancer Invasion, and Metastasis".

30 Nov 2017

Study provides new insights into basis for responsiveness of testicular cancer to chemotherapy

Cornell researchers have taken a major step toward answering a key question in cancer research: Why is testicular cancer so responsive to chemotherapy, even after it metastasizes?

14 Nov 2017

Discovery may provide insight into how Zika virus gets transmitted from mother to fetus

Researchers at the University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues in Brazil, report that the Zika virus is transmitted from mother to fetus by infected cells that, ironically, will later develop into the brain's first and primary form of defense against invasive pathogens.

27 Oct 2017