developmental biology

Topic description and stories

Study suggests embryos could be susceptible to coronavirus as early as second week of pregnancy

05 Aug 2020

Genes that are thought to play a role in how the SARS-CoV-2 virus infects our cells have been found to be active in embryos as early as during the...

Scientists develop mouse ‘embryo-like structures’ with organisation along body’s major axes

03 Oct 2018

A team of scientists at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge has developed an artificial mouse embryo-like structure capable of forming the three major axes...

Synthetic embryo-like structure made of three stem cells types in yellow, pink and green

Scientists generate key life event in artificial mouse ‘embryo’ created from stem cells

23 Jul 2018

̽��ֱ��creation of artificial embryos has moved a step forward after an international team of researchers used mouse stem cells to produce artificial...

Dermal denticles on the tail of the Little Skate, as used in the latest research.

Ancient fish scales and vertebrate teeth share an embryonic origin

20 Nov 2017

Latest findings support the theory that teeth in the animal kingdom evolved from the jagged scales of ancient fish, the remnants of which can be seen...

Breath of life: how your risk of heart disease may stem back to your time in the womb

11 Jul 2017

Smoking, lack of exercise, bad diet and our genes are all well-known risk factors for heart disease, cancer and diabetes. But, as researchers are...

Human reproduction likely to be more efficient than previously thought

13 Jun 2017

How difficult is it to conceive? According to a widely-held view, fewer than one in three embryos make it to term, but a new study from a researcher...

Developing human primordial germ cells (each small green and red cell is a PGC)

Similarities in human and pig embryos provide clues to early stages of development

07 Jun 2017

Scientists have shown how the precursors of egg and sperm cells – the cells that are key to the preservation of a species – arise in the early embryo...

Miniature ‘womb lining’ grown in lab could reveal secrets of menstrual cycle and early pregnancy

10 Apr 2017

Scientists at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge have succeeded in growing miniature functional models of the lining of the womb (uterus) in culture. These...

Left: Early skate embryo labeled with fluorescent dye. Right: Image of a hatchling skate

Deeper origin of gill evolution suggests 'active lifestyle' link in early vertebrates

09 Feb 2017

Fish embryo study indicates that the last common ancestor of vertebrates was a complex animal complete with gills – overturning prior scientific...

Early-stage embryos with abnormalities may still develop into healthy babies

29 Mar 2016

Abnormal cells in the early embryo are not necessarily a sign that a baby will be born with a birth defect such as Down’s syndrome, suggests new...

Stressed young birds stop learning from their parents and turn to wider flock

23 Jul 2015

Juvenile zebra finches that experience high stress levels will ignore how their own parents forage and instead learn such skills from other...

Adult Volvox spheroid containing multiple embryos

Upside down and inside out

27 Apr 2015

Researchers have captured the first 3D video of a living algal embryo turning itself inside out, from a sphere to a mushroom shape and back again...

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