What is embryology? What does science study embryology?

The science of biology includes a whole range of different sections, because it is difficult for one discipline to embrace all that diversity of living things and to study all the vast biomass that our planet provides to us.

Each science, in its turn, also has a certain classification of sections dealing with the solution of some problems. Thus, it turns out that all living things are under the vigilant control of a person, is known to them, compared, studied and used in their own needs.

One of such disciplines is embryology, which will be discussed later.

Embryology - Biological Science

What is embryology? What does she do and study? Embryology is a science that explores a part of the life cycle of a living organism from the moment of the formation of a zygote (fertilization of an egg) and until its birth. That is, he studies the entire process of embryonic development in detail, beginning with the multiple crushing of the fertilized cell (gastrula stage) and the appearance of a ready-made organism.

Object and subject of study

The object of studying this science are embryos (embryos) of the following organisms:

1. The plants.
2. Animals.
3. The man.

The subject of studying embryology is the following processes:

1. Cell division after fertilization.
2. Formation of three embryonic leaves in the future embryo.
3. Formation of coelomic cavities.
4. Formation of the symmetry of the future embryo.
5. The appearance of membranes around the embryo, taking part in its formation.
6. Formation of organs and their systems.

If you look at the object and subject of research of this science, it becomes more clear what embryology is and what it does.

Goals and objectives

The main goal posed by this science is to give answers to questions about the appearance of life on our planet, about the formation of a multicellular organism, what organic laws all the processes of formation and development of an embryo are subordinate to, and also about what factors and How they affect this formation.

To achieve this goal, science embryology solves the following problems:

1. Detailed study of progenesis (formation of male and female sex cells - oogenesis and spermatogenesis).
2. Consideration of the mechanisms of formation of the zygote and further formation of the embryo until the moment of its emergence outside (hatching from eggs, eggs or birth to light).
3. Study of the complete cell cycle at the level of molecules, using high-resolution modern equipment.
4. Examination and comparison of the mechanisms of the cell operation in the norm and in pathological processes, in order to obtain important data for medicine.

Solving the above tasks and achieving this goal, the science of embryology will be able to move humanity forward in understanding the natural laws of the organic world, as well as find solutions to many problems in medicine, in particular, related to infertility and childbirth.

History of development

The development of embryology as a science goes along a complex and thorny path. It all began with the two great philosopher scientists of all time, Aristotle and Hippocrates. And it was on the soil of embryology that they opposed each other's views.

So, Hippocrates was a supporter of the theory, which lasted a very long time, until the XVII century. It was called "preformism," and its essence was as follows. Every living organism only grows in size over time, but does not form any new structures and organs within itself. Because all the organs are already ready, but very reduced, are in the male or female sex cell (here the proponents of the theory are not exactly determined in the views: some thought that all the same in the female, the other that in the male cage). Thus, it appears that the embryo simply grows with all the organs prepared from the father or mother.

Also later supporters of this theory were Charles Bonnet, Marcello Malpighi and others.

Aristotle, on the contrary, was an opponent of the theory of preformism and a supporter of the theory of epigenesis. Its essence boiled down to the following: all organs and structural elements of living organisms are formed inside the embryo gradually, under the influence of the conditions of the surrounding and internal environment of the organism. The proponents of this theory were the majority of Renaissance scientists, headed by Georges Buffon, Carl Baer.

Actually, as a science, embryology was formed in the 18th century. It was then that a number of brilliant discoveries took place that allowed analyzing and generalizing all the accumulated material and integrating it into an integral theory.

1. 1759 K. Wolf describes the presence and formation in the embryonic development of the chicken embryonic leaflets, which then give rise to new structures and organs.
2. 1827. Karl Baer opens the ovum of mammals. He also publishes his work, which describes the phased formation of embryonic leaflets and organs from them in the process of development of birds.
3. Karl Baer reveals the similarity in the embryonic structure of birds, reptiles and mammals, which allows him to conclude that the origin of species is the same, and also to formulate his rule (Baer's rule): the development of organisms comes from the general to the particular. That is, initially all the structures are unified, regardless of gender, species or class. And only with the passage of time there are individual species specializations of each being.

After such discoveries and descriptions, discipline begins to gain momentum in development. Embryology of vertebrate and invertebrate animals, plants, and also man is being formed.

Modern embryology

At the present stage of development, the main task embryology sees the opening of the essence of the mechanisms of cell differentiation in multicellular organisms, the identification of the features of the influence of various reagents on the development of the embryo. Also much attention is paid to the study of the mechanisms of the origin of pathologies and their influence on the development of the embryo.

The achievements of modern science, allowing to more fully reveal the question of what embryology is, are the following:

1. DP Filatov defined the mechanisms of mutual influence of cellular structures on each other in the process of embryonic development, connected the embryology data with the theoretical material of evolutionary theory.
2. Severtsov developed the doctrine of recapitulation, the essence of which is that ontogeny repeats phylogeny.
3. PP Ivanov creates the theory of larval segments of the body in primitive animals.
4. Svetlov formulates the provisions that illuminated the most difficult, critical moments of embryogenesis.

This modern embryology does not stop and continues to study and discover all the new patterns and mechanisms of the cytogenetic basis of the cell.

Relationship with other sciences

Fundamentals of embryology are closely related to other sciences. After all, only the comprehensive use of theoretical data from all disciplines adjacent to it allows one to obtain truly valuable results and draw important conclusions.

Embryology is closely connected with the following sciences:

• histology;
• cytology;
• genetics;
• biochemistry;
• molecular biology;
• anatomy;
• physiology;
• medicine.

Embryology data are important bases for the listed sciences, and vice versa. That is, the relationship is bilateral, mutual.

Classification of sections of embryology

Embryology is a science that studies not only the formation of the embryo itself, but also the laying of all its structures and the origin of the sex cells that preceded its formation. In addition, the field of its study includes the physicochemical factors that affect the fetus. Therefore, such a large theoretical volume of material allowed the formation of several sections of this science:

1. General embryology.
2. Experimental.
3. Comparative.
4. Ecological.
5. Ontogenetics.

Methods of studying science

Embryology, like other sciences, has its own methods of studying various issues.

1. Microscopy (electronic, light).
2. Method of stained structures.
3. In vivo observation (tracking morphogenetic movements).
4. Application of histochemistry.
5. Introduction of radioactive isotopes.
6. Biochemical methods.
7. Preparation of parts of the embryo.

Study of the human embryo

Human embryology is one of the most important parts of this science, because thanks to many results of her research people have managed to solve a lot of medical problems.

What exactly does this discipline study?

1. Full stage-by-stage process of embryo formation in humans, which includes several basic stages - crushing, gastrulation, histogenesis and organogenesis.
2. Formation of various pathologies during embryogenesis and the causes of their appearance.
3. The influence of physicochemical factors on the human embryo.
4. The possibility of creating artificial conditions for the formation of embryos and the introduction of chemical agents to monitor reactions to them.

Importance of Science

Embryology provides an opportunity to learn such features of embryo formation as:

• The timing of the formation of organs and their systems from embryonic sheets;
• The most critical moments of ontogenesis of the embryo;
• That influences their formation and how this can be managed for human needs.

Her research, together with the data of other sciences, allows humanity to solve important tasks of universal medical, as well as veterinary plan.

The role of discipline for people

What is embryology for humans? What does she give him? Why is it necessary to develop and study it?

First, embryology studies and allows solving modern problems of fertilization and the formation of embryos. Therefore, methods of artificial insemination, surrogate motherhood and so on have been developed today.

Secondly, embryology methods allow to predict all possible fetal anomalies and prevent them.

Thirdly, embryologists can formulate and apply provisions on preventive measures for miscarriages and ectopic pregnancies and exercise control over pregnant women.

This is far from all the advantages of the discipline considered for man. It is an intensively developing science, the future of which is yet to come.