Early Embryology
Kristine Krafts, M.D.
Embryology Lecture Objectives
• In general, what happens in the first and second
phases of the embryonic period?
• What happens during week 1 and 2?
• Describe what happens during gastrulation.
• How does the neural tube form, and what
happens to it?
• What structures are derived from the endoderm,
mesoderm, ectoderm, and neural crest?
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
Embryonic period phase 2
• Formation of neural tube
• Differentiation of mesoderm
• Folding of embryo
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
This YouTube video is awesome at explaining
early embryonic development:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN3lep6roRI
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
Week 1: Differentiation of Morula into Blastocyst
Morula Blastocyst
Week 2: Formation of Bilaminar Germ Disk
epiblast
hypoblast
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
"It is not birth, marriage, or death, but gastrulation
which is truly the most important time in your life.”
- Lewis Wolpert (1986)
Gastrulation: formation of primitive streak
primitive streak
primitive node
epiblast
Gastrulation: movement and differentiation
of epiblast cells
Bilaminar germ disk
Primitive streak
Epiblast
Hypoblast
Endoderm Ectoderm Mesoderm Endoderm
Epiblast cells give rise to all three germ cell layers!
(the hypoblast does NOT turn into endoderm)
Gastrulation: formation of notochord
The notochord is super important because
it tells the three layers what to do next.
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
Embryonic period phase 2
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
Embryonic period phase 2
• Formation of neural tube
Formation of Neural Tube
Formation of the Neural Tube
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
Embryonic period phase 2
• Formation of neural tube
• Differentiation of mesoderm
Differentiation of mesoderm
Central nervous system
Neuroectoderm
Bones of the head
Neural crest Urogenital system
Intermediate plate mesoderm
Know this!
Surface ectoderm Paraxial mesoderm Lateral plate mesoderm
Epidermis All the muscles of the body Heart
Most of the bones of the body Hematopoietic system
(except the bones of the head)
Endoderm
Lining of GI tract
Embryology Lecture Outline
General overview of prenatal development
Embryonic period phase 1
• Formation of bilaminar disk
• Formation of trilaminar disk (gastrulation)
Embryonic period phase 2
• Formation of neural tube
• Differentiation of mesoderm
• Folding of embryo
Folding of the Embryo
Lateral plate
mesoderm splits in
two.
One part remains
near the ectoderm.
The other part
follows the
endoderm.
Folding of the Embryo
Endodermal layer (lined by Ectodermal layer (lined by mesoderm)
mesoderm) bends, the edges grows forward, reaches around the
reaching towards each other, gut, and zips up the front to form the
meeting in front to form the gut. anterior body wall.
Folding of the Embryo
Back, with ectoderm
overlying neural tube
Gut (lined by endoderm,
surrounded by mesoderm)
Amnion (and amniotic cavity) comes Anterior thoracic wall
along for the ride, eventually (mesoderm covered with
surrounding entire embryo. ectoderm)
What happens to the neural tube?
It turns into the brain
(forebrain, midbrain and hindbrain)
and the spinal cord.
Hey, what’s that mesoderm doing
there? It’s forming:
• Somatomeres (which turn into
muscles of the head and neck)
• Somites (which turn into the
bones and muscles of the back).
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
We covered this
in this lecture.
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
We covered some of this
in this lecture.
Prenatal Development
Embryo Fetus
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3
Cellular Differentiation of Growth and
proliferation internal & external maturation
and migration structures
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 40
Fertilization Delivery
We’ll cover head and neck development in oral histology,
and we’ll cover development of organ systems later in this course.
