Symmetry Breaking in the Mammalian Embryo

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 405-426 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hui Ting Zhang ◽  
Takashi Hiiragi
Keyword(s):  
Embryonic Development ◽  
Symmetry Breaking ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Continuous Process ◽  
Model System ◽  
The Body ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Early Mammalian Development

We present an overview of symmetry breaking in early mammalian development as a continuous process from compaction to specification of the body axes. While earlier studies have focused on individual symmetry-breaking events, recent advances enable us to explore progressive symmetry breaking during early mammalian development. Although we primarily discuss embryonic development of the mouse, as it is the best-studied mammalian model system to date, we also highlight the shared and distinct aspects between different mammalian species. Finally, we discuss how insights gained from studying mammalian development can be generalized in light of self-organization principles. With this review, we hope to highlight new perspectives in studying symmetry breaking and self-organization in multicellular systems.

scholarly journals Common principles of early mammalian embryo self-organisation

Development ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 147 (14) ◽  
pp. dev183079 ◽  
Author(s):  
Berenika Płusa ◽  
Anna Piliszek
Keyword(s):  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Cellular Mechanisms ◽  
Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Early Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Physical Forces ◽  
Self Organisation ◽  
Unifying Principles ◽  
Morphogenic Process ◽  
Early Mammalian Development

ABSTRACTPre-implantation mammalian development unites extreme plasticity with a robust outcome: the formation of a blastocyst, an organised multi-layered structure ready for implantation. The process of blastocyst formation is one of the best-known examples of self-organisation. The first three cell lineages in mammalian development specify and arrange themselves during the morphogenic process based on cell-cell interactions. Despite decades of research, the unifying principles driving early mammalian development are still not fully defined. Here, we discuss the role of physical forces, and molecular and cellular mechanisms, in driving self-organisation and lineage formation that are shared between eutherian mammals.

scholarly journals Heterochromatin Morphodynamics in Late Oogenesis and Early Embryogenesis of Mammals

Cells ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 1497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irina Bogolyubova ◽  
Dmitry Bogolyubov
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Chromatin Condensation ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Biological Significance ◽  
Histone Variants ◽  
Nuclear Bodies ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Oocyte Growth ◽  
Early Embryos ◽  
Early Mammalian Development

During the period of oocyte growth, chromatin undergoes global rearrangements at both morphological and molecular levels. An intriguing feature of oogenesis in some mammalian species is the formation of a heterochromatin ring-shaped structure, called the karyosphere or surrounded “nucleolus”, which is associated with the periphery of the nucleolus-like bodies (NLBs). Morphologically similar heterochromatin structures also form around the nucleolus-precursor bodies (NPBs) in zygotes and persist for several first cleavage divisions in blastomeres. Despite recent progress in our understanding the regulation of gene silencing/expression during early mammalian development, as well as the molecular mechanisms that underlie chromatin condensation and heterochromatin structure, the biological significance of the karyosphere and its counterparts in early embryos is still elusive. We pay attention to both the changes of heterochromatin morphology and to the molecular mechanisms that can affect the configuration and functional activity of chromatin. We briefly discuss how DNA methylation, post-translational histone modifications, alternative histone variants, and some chromatin-associated non-histone proteins may be involved in the formation of peculiar heterochromatin structures intimately associated with NLBs and NPBs, the unique nuclear bodies of oocytes and early embryos.

scholarly journals Diverse developmental strategies of X chromosome dosage compensation in eutherian mammals

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (3-4-5) ◽  
pp. 223-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander I. Shevchenko ◽  
Elena V. Dementyeva ◽  
Irina S. Zakharova ◽  
Suren M. Zakian
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
X Chromosome ◽  
Dosage Compensation ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
X Chromosome Inactivation ◽  
Chromosome Inactivation ◽  
Autosomal Gene ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Compensation Mechanisms ◽  
Early Mammalian Development

In eutherian mammals, dosage compensation arose to balance X-linked gene expression between sexes and relatively to autosomal gene expression in the evolution of sex chromosomes. Dosage compensation occurs in early mammalian development and comprises X chromosome upregulation and inactivation that are tightly coordinated epigenetic processes. Despite a uniform principle of dosage compensation, mechanisms of X chromosome inactivation and upregulation demonstrate a significant variability depending on sex, developmental stage, cell type, individual, and mammalian species. The review focuses on relationships between X chromosome inactivation and upregulation in mammalian early development.

scholarly journals Early mammalian development: from basic research to the clinic

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (3-4-5) ◽  
pp. 73-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aneta Suwińska ◽  
Anna Ajduk
Keyword(s):  
Embryonic Development ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Embryonic Cell ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Cell Lineages ◽  
Mammalian Embryos ◽  
New Ideas ◽  
Totipotent Cell ◽  
Early Mammalian Development ◽  
Mammalian Embryonic Development

Preimplantation embryonic development lays the foundations for the future individual. Fertilization, cleavage, differentiation of the first embryonic cell lineages and implantation of the embryo into the maternal uterus are absolutely critical for proper embryogenesis. Solving unanswered questions as well as creating new ideas and theories constitute the main axis of the basic research, which is driven by the curiosity of scientists and their desire to explore the unknown. We researchers have been exploring the development of mammalian embryos for decades, searching for the answer to the most fundamental question in the whole area of biology: how a complex organism derives from a single totipotent cell, a zygote. Due to obvious ethical concerns, animals, such as mice and, currently more and more often, cattle, pigs and rabbits, have become useful models for studying human embryonic development. Unprecedented advancement in cell and molecular biology techniques witnessed in the last years allows us to deepen our understanding of mammalian embryonic development.

scholarly journals Self-organization of stem cells into embryos: A window on early mammalian development

Science ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 364 (6444) ◽  
pp. 948-951 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta N. Shahbazi ◽  
Eric D. Siggia ◽  
Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Embryonic Stem ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
In Vivo Studies ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Intrinsic Capacity ◽  
Three Dimensional Models ◽  
Early Mammalian Development

Embryonic development is orchestrated by robust and complex regulatory mechanisms acting at different scales of organization. In vivo studies are particularly challenging for mammals after implantation, owing to the small size and inaccessibility of the embryo. The generation of stem cell models of the embryo represents a powerful system with which to dissect this complexity. Control of geometry, modulation of the physical environment, and priming with chemical signals reveal the intrinsic capacity of embryonic stem cells to make patterns. Adding the stem cells for the extraembryonic lineages generates three-dimensional models that are more autonomous from the environment and recapitulate many features of the pre- and postimplantation mouse embryo, including gastrulation. Here, we review the principles of self-organization and how they set cells in motion to create an embryo.

scholarly journals Time-resolved succession of epigenetic regulation during early mammalian development

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hebing Chen ◽  
Hao Li ◽  
Shuai Jiang ◽  
Xin Huang ◽  
Wanying Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Embryonic Development ◽  
Transcriptional Activity ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Lineage Specification ◽  
Cell Stage ◽  
Time Resolved ◽  
Epigenetic Marks ◽  
Early Mammalian Development ◽  
Mammalian Embryonic Development ◽  
Accessible Chromatin

During early mammalian embryonic development, different epigenetic mechanisms undergo dramatic changes; yet how these interconnected epigenetic layers function together to coordinate expression of the genetic code in a spatiotemporal manner remains unknown. Here, we describe a time-resolved study of the hierarchy of epigenetic marks and events, which we used to model transcriptional programs that cannot be understood by investigating steady state. We found that, following fertilization, the re-establishment of accessible chromatin together with transcription factors inherited from oocytes initiates transcription at the 2-cell stage, and then the introduction of active histone modification, H3K4me3, facilitates gene up-regulation at the 4-cell stage, then stabilization of higher-order chromatin structures at the 8-cell stage further enhances transcriptional activity. During the first lineage specification at ICM, transcription activity multifaceted regulation of epigenetic marks. Finally, we quantitatively model the stage succession of different epigenetic marks on transcriptional programs during early embryonic development.

A self-organization framework for symmetry breaking in the mammalian embryo

2013 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. 452-459 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sebastian Wennekamp ◽  
Sven Mesecke ◽  
François Nédélec ◽  
Takashi Hiiragi
Keyword(s):  
Symmetry Breaking ◽  
Self Organization ◽  
Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Organization Framework

scholarly journals FGF/ERK signaling pathway: how it operates in mammalian preimplantation embryos and embryo-derived stem cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 63 (3-4-5) ◽  
pp. 171-186 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Soszyńska ◽  
Katarzyna Klimczewska ◽  
Aneta Suwińska
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Current Knowledge ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Preimplantation Embryos ◽  
Mammalian Development ◽  
Mammalian Embryo ◽  
Extracellular Signal Regulated Kinase ◽  
Extracellular Signals ◽  
Extracellular Signal

The integration of extracellular signals and lineage-specific transcription factors allows cells to react flexibly to their environment, thus endowing the mammalian embryo with the capacity of regulative development. The combination of genetic and pharmacological tools allowing disruption of the fibroblast growth factor / extracellular signal-regulated kinase (FGF/ERK) pathway, together with animal models expressing lineage-specific reporters provided new insights into the role of this signaling cascade during mammalian development, as well as in embryo-derived stem cells. Here, we combine current knowledge acquired from different mammalian models to consider the universality of this cascade in specifying cellular fate across mammalian species.

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