Abstract
During embryogenesis it is necessary for the product of gamete fusion to transform itself into a multicellular organism capable of relatively autonomous existence. Through cleavage, the zygote is divided into a group of cells with the same genetic program. And yet, despite their equivalence at the genetic level, the cells must organize themselves in a way that promotes differences in their individual patterns of development. This process is complicated by the amount of yolk present in the zygote and by the genetic constraints imposed by the history of the lineage.
“It is not birth, marriage, or death, but gastrulation which is truly the most important time of your life.” -Lewis Wolpert
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© 1998 Springer Science+Business Media New York
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Lombardi, J. (1998). Embryogenesis. In: Comparative Vertebrate Reproduction. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-4937-6_8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4615-4937-6_8
Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA
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Online ISBN: 978-1-4615-4937-6
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