Dan Matthew Espinoza Burias BIO 120 Developmental Biology

BS Biology (General Biology: Microbiology Track) – IV February 19, 2016

Embryonic/fetal development events from week 1 to birth:

TRIMESTER DEVELOPMENTAL PROCESS

 Heart begins to beat

FIRST TRIMESTER (0 – 14 weeks)
SECOND TRIMESTER (14 – 28 weeks)
 Bones have appeared, head, arms, fingers,
legs, and toes are formed
 Placenta forms
 Hairs start to grow
 20 buds for future teeth have appeared by
the end of this period
 Fetus is 4 inches long and weighs just over
1 ounce
 Fetus grows quickly from now until birth
 Organs are developing further
 Eyebrows and fingernails formed
 Skin is wrinkled and covered with fine hairs
(lanugo)
 Fetus moves, kicks, sleeps and wakes,
swallows, can hear, and can pass urine
 Fetus is 11 inches long and weighs about 2
pounds

 Fetus kicks and stretches, but as it gets

THIRD TRIMESTER (28 – 40 weeks)
bigger it has less space to move
 Lanugo starts to disappear
 Fetus usually settles into a position for birth
 At 40 weeks, the fetus will be full term,
usually 20 inches long and weighs 6 to 9
pounds

Roles of hormones during pregnancy and birth:

  Progesterone - made early in pregnancy by a cyst on the ovary called the corpus luteum.
The corpus luteum continues to produce progesterone until about 10 weeks, when its production
is taken over by the placenta. In the first trimester, levels of progesterone rise exponentially, and
then they plateau. Progesterone keeps the uterus muscle relaxed and plays a role in the immune
system helping the body tolerate foreign DNA (that is, the fetus). It also stimulates the thickening
of the uterine lining in anticipation of implantation of a fertilized egg.

 Oxytocin - Receptor cells that allow your body to respond to oxytocin increase gradually in
pregnancy and then sharply during labor. Oxytocin stimulates powerful contractions, which help
to thin and open (dilate) the cervix, move the baby down and out of the birth canal, expel the
placenta, and limit bleeding at the site of the placenta. During labor and birth, the pressure of the
baby against the cervix, and then against tissues in the pelvic floor, stimulates oxytocin and
contractions. So does a suckling newborn.
  Adrenaline - the "fight or flight" hormone that humans produce to help ensure survival.
Women who feel threatened during labor (for example by fear or severe pain) may produce high
levels of adrenaline. Adrenaline can slow labor or stop it altogether. Earlier in human evolution,
this disruption helped birthing women move to a place of greater safety. 

Influence of outside environment on fetal development:

Teratogens
The scientific study of congenital abnormalities caused by prenatal environmental influences is known as
teratology and the environmental agents that produce abnormalities in the developing fetus are called
teratogens.

Drugs
Chemicals (over-the-counter and prescribed pharmaceuticals as well as illegal substances) can cause a
wide range of congenital abnormalities that account for about 10 percent of birth defects. The severity of
the abnormality depends on the amount of the chemical the mother is exposed to, the developmental
stage of the fetus, and the period of time over which the mother's exposure to the chemical takes place.
In terms of narcotics, women who are addicted to heroin, morphine, or methadone give birth to addicted
babies. Soon after birth, the babies show symptoms of withdrawal, including tremors, convulsions,
difficulty breathing, and intestinal disturbances.

Smoking and Nicotine

Cigarette smoking has already been shown to have dire consequences for the smoker, and it can be
hazardous for the fetus and the newborn child. Maternal smoking increases the risk of spontaneous
abortions, bleeding during pregnancy, prematurerupture of the amniotic sac, and fetal deaths and deaths
of newborns. Women who smoke during pregnancy give birth to babies who are about one-half pound
(225 grams) lighter (on the average) and smaller in all dimensions (for example, length and head
circumference) than babies of nonsmokers, are born prematurely, and have other health problems.

Alcohol
The effects of alcohol are almost undisputed. Fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS), identified in 1973, is perhaps
one of the best known and best documented outcomes of drinking, affecting approximately one out of
every 750 births. And it is not just the heavy drinker who may place her fetus in danger. It has been found
that women having one or more drinks daily were three times more likely to miscarry than women who
had less than one drink daily.

FAS is a pattern of malformations in which the most serious effect is mental retardation. Other possible
complications include permanent growth retardation, malformations of the face, brain damage,
hyperactivity and learning disabilities, and heart defects.

Even if a child does not suffer from FAS, the effects of alcohol consumption can be significant. Although
these children do not manifest the characteristics discussed above, they are at high risk for such
problems of children of alcoholics as hyperactivity and learning disabilities. Results of research also
indicate that moderate drinking can affect the later development of a child's intelligence as measured by
IQ scores at age four.
The Mother
Since the mother's body is the chief element in the fetus' environment, the mother's physical condition
can significantly affect the baby's development. Among the maternal factors known to influence the fetus
are disease, age, diet, reactions associated with a certain blood component, and prolonged stress.

Diseases
Since the placenta cannot filter out extremely small disease carriers, such as viruses, children can be
born with malaria, measles, chicken pox, mumps, syphilis, or other venereal diseases that have been
transmitted from the mother.

Rubella is the most widespread of the viruses that have a teratogenic effect. If a pregnant woman
contracts rubella in the first three months of pregnancy, she is likely to give birth to a child with a
congenital abnormality such as heart disease, cataracts, deafness, or mental retardation. Interestingly,
there is not a direct relationship between the severity of the disease in the mother and its effect on the
fetus. For example, women who have had mild attacks of rubella have given birth to babies with severe
abnormalities.

Although rubella might be the most widespread disease, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is
by far the most frightening and the one that has received the most publicity. The vast majority of children
with AIDS contracted the disease sometime between early pregnancy and birth. The disease is usually
transmitted from the mother through the uterus during pregnancy or is acquired by the off-spring at birth.

Toxemia is a frightening condition that is potentially fatal for the mother and the fetus. It is characterized
by high blood pressure, swelling, and weight gain due to a buildup of fluid in the body tissues, and the
presence of protein in the mother's urine. In severe cases the woman may go into convulsions or coma,
placing a tremendous strain on her, which is carried over to the fetus. Women with toxemia frequently
give birth to premature babies or to babies smaller than average for their gestational age. Like many other
types of blood-pressure disorders, however, toxemia can be treated through medication and diet.

Anoxia is a condition in which the brain of the baby does not receive enough oxygen to allow it to develop
properly. Anoxia can cause certain forms of epilepsy, mental deficiency, cerebral palsy, and behavior
disorders. If the amount of brain damage is not too severe, however, it may be possible to compensate for
the disorder to some extent. Epilepsy can often be controlled with drugs, for instance, and many children
with cerebral palsy can learn to control their affected muscles.

Age
Teenage mothers and those over thirty-five years of age have a higher risk of miscarriage, premature
birth, and some birth defects than mothers in the prime childbearing years. Some of the reasons are fairly
obvious. Very young mothers have not yet completed their own development, and the reproductive
system may not be quite ready to function smoothly or effectively. In older women the reproductive
system may be past its most efficient functioning.

In both cases, pregnancy puts an extra strain on a body that is not fully able to bear it. Furthermore, there
is some reason to think that a woman's ova may deteriorate with age, leading to a greater risk of birth
defects. Women have all their ova in partly developed form when they are born. So a woman who
becomes pregnant at age thirty-seven, for example, is "using" an ovum that has been more or less
exposed to thirty-seven years' worth of harmful chemicals, radiation, virus infections, and whatever else
has happened to her body. This may explain why, for instance, Down syndrome is most common in
children born to mothers over forty years of age.
It is quite possible that men's sperm may also be susceptible to chemicals and radiation effects over time.
Furthermore, there may be genetic disorders that cause changes in sperm structure.

Diet and Physical Condition

Just as other aspects of physical health are important, so is the mother's diet. While physicians and
researchers have long realized that pregnancy puts additional demands on the mother's body, they used
to assume that the fetus' nutritional needs would be met first, even at the mother's expense.