Sea urchin

Unfertilized egg

LPO HPO
Early cleavage

HPO
Late cleavage

LPO HPO
Starfish
Morula

LPO

Frog
Early blastula

LPO HPO

LPO HPO
 Late blastula

LPO HPO
Questions

1. The Stages of Early Cleavage

-Cleavage begins about 24h after the egg has been fertilized once the pronuclei have fused.

1st Cleavage -Resulting embryo is 2 cells (i.e., 2 blastomeres or

2 cleavage cells)
-DNA has been synthesized: Embryo has double
the DNA content of zygote
-Embryo has made membrane to surround both
cells
-Growth has not occured so the 2 blastomeres
together are approximately the same size as
the original
zygote
2nd Cleavage -Embryo is 4 cells
-DNA has been synthesized: Embryo now has 4x
DNA content
-Embryo has made membrane to surround all four
cells
-Growth has not occurred so the 4 blastomeres
together are about the same size as the original
zygote
3rd Cleavage -Embryo is 8 cells
-More DNA has been synthesized: Embryo now
has 8x DNA content
-Embryo has made membrane to surround all 8
cells
-DNA duplication and membrane synthesis of will
continue as cells continue to divide
-Growth has not occurred so the 8 blastomeres
together are approximately the same size as the
zygote
-Embryo will now undergo compaction just prior to
next division leading to 16 cell stage
Compaction -At the 8 cell stage the human embryo undergoes a
process called compaction.
-It results from cells adhering together more tightly

Formation of the Blastocycst
Hatching of the Blastocyst
-The embryo becomes more compact, but the cells
still remain separate from each other
-The cell adhesion protein, E-cadherin appears
at the time of compaction and causes the cells
to adhere together more tightly than previously.
-Fluid begins to appear between blastomeres
-Process is called "Cavitation"
-Begins ~4 Days after fertilization
-Produces "Blastocoele": the fluid-filled cavity of
blastocyst
-Hatching occurs just prior to implantation
-Embryo breaks through ZP due to proteases
secreted by blastocyst
-Inability to hatch is a reason for infertility;
could be due to altered zona pellucida or to
the absence of
essential protease for zona digestion
-Often assisted hatching is done in vitro during
ART procedures
-In mutant mouse embryos lacking ZP1, the zona
pellucida is weak and the embryos hatch
prematurely.

2. Describe the role of cytoskeleton in cleavage.

Cytoskeleton plays major role in the cleavage stage of development. The mechanical agent of
karyokinesis, the division of nucleus is the mitotic spindle, with its microtubules composed of
tubulin (the same type of protein that majes up the sperm flagellum). In the division of the cell
called cytokinesis, the mechanical agent is a contractile ring of microfilaments made of actin (the
same type of protein that extends the egg microvilli and the sperm acrosomal process). The
contractile ring creates a cleavage furrow, which eventually bisects the plane of mitosis, thereby
creating two genetically equivalent blastomeres; if the ring is disrupted, cytokinesis stops. In
addition to their role in creating the mitotic spindle, the microtubules are seen near the cleavage
furrow since they are needed in bringing membrane material to the site of membrane addition.

3. List and describe some development anomaly associated with cleavage.

Holoprosencephaly – Single-sphered cerebral structure with a common ventricle with facial

abnormalities secondary to incomplete cleavage of the forebrain
a. Often trisomy 13, 14, 15, 18
b. associated with polydactyly, renal dysplasia, maternal diabetes
c. can be alobar, semilobar (with partial falx partially separated thalamus and basal
ganglia), or lobar (squared frontal horns, gray matter in corpus callosum, no facial
abnormalities)
d. must be distinguished from hydrancephaly (Absence or partial absence of the cerebral
hemisphere with fluid replacement due to multiple environmental insults which interfere
with cerebral blood supply)
Arhinencephaly – no olfactory bulb or tract; gray matter in corpus callosum; includes Kallman
syndrome (anosmia, hypogonadism, mental retardation)

Septo-optic dysplasia (Demorsier’s syndrome) – mild lobar holoprosencephaly with no

septum, hypoplastic optic nerves, seizures, mental retardation, hypotelorism, ventriculomegaly

Cleidocranial dysostosis – retention of mandibular teeth, delayed closure of fontanelle,

wormian bones, midline deficits