Key Experiments in Practical Developmental Biology

This manual presents 27 laboratory exercises for student practical classes in developmental biology.

Manuel Marí-Beffa (Edited by), Jennifer Knight (Edited by)

9780521179768, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 17 February 2011

404 pages
24.1 x 17 x 2.3 cm, 0.64 kg

Originally published in 2005, this unique resource presents 27 easy-to-follow laboratory exercises for use in student practical classes in developmental biology. These experiments provide key insights into developmental questions, and many of them are described by the leaders in the field who carried out the original research. This book intends to bridge the gap between experimental work and the laboratory classes taken at the undergraduate and post-graduate levels. All chapters follow the same format, taking the students from materials and methods, through results and discussion, so that they learn the underlying rationale and analysis employed in the research. The book will be an invaluable resource for graduate students and instructors teaching practical developmental biology courses. Chapters include teaching concepts, discussion of the degree of difficulty of each experiment, potential sources of failure, as well as the time required for each experiment to be carried out in a class with students.

List of contributors
Preface Manuel Marí
Introduction Jennifer Knight
Part I. Graftings: 1. Two developmental gradients control head formation in hydra H. R. Bode
2. Embryonic regulation and induction in sea urchin development C. A. Ettensohn
3. The isthmic organizer and brain regionalization in chick embryos D. Echevaarría and S. Martínez
Part II. Specific Chemical Reagents: 4. Chemotaxis of aggregating Dictyostelium cells G. Gerisch and M. Ecke
5. Inhibition of signal transduction pathways prevents head regeneration in hydra L. M. Salgado
6. Retinoic acid during limb regeneration M. Maden
Part III. Beads Implantation: 7. Experimental techniques in avian embryos Y. Gañán, J. Rodríguez-León and D. Macías
8. Induction of ectopic limb outgrowth in chick with FGF-8 A. Raya, C. Rodríguez Esteban and J. C. Izpisúa-Belmonte
Part IV. Nucleic Acid Injections: 9. RNAi techniques applied to freshwater planarians (Platyhelminthes) during regeneration D. Bueno, R. Romero and E. Saló
10. Microinjection of Xenopus embryos R. J. Garriock and P. A. Krieg
Part V. Genetic Analysis: 11. Segmental specification in Drosophila melanogaster L. De Navas, M. Suzanne, D. Foronda and E. Sánchez-Herrero
12. Genetic analysis of flower development in Arabidopsis thaliana: the ABC model of floral organ identity determination J. L. Riechmann
13. Genetic analysis of vulva development in C. elegans S. Canevascini
Part VI. Clonal Analysis: 14. The role of the gene apterous in the development of the Drosophila wing F. J. Díaz-Benjumea
15. Extramacrochaetae, an example of a gene required for control of limb size and cell differentiation during wing morphogenesis in Drosophila A. Baonza
16. Hedgehog transduction pathway is involved in pattern formation in Drosophila melanogaster tergites M. Marí-Beffa
Part VII. In situ Hybridization: 17. Retinoic acid signalling controls anteroposterior patterning of the zebrafish hindbrain G. Begemann
18. Left-right asymmetry in the mouse M. Blum, A. Schweickert and C. Karcher
Part VIII. Transgenic Organisms: 19. Bicoid and Dorsal: two transcriptions factor gradients which specify cell fates in the early Drosophila embryo S. Roth
20. Significance of the temporal modulation of Hox gene expression on segment morphology J. Castelli-Gair Hombría
21. The UAS/GAL4 system for tissue-specific analysis of EGFR gene function in Drosophila melanogaster J. B. Duffy and N. Perrimon
22. Neurogenesis in Drosophila: a genetic approach C. Klämbt and H. Vaessin
23. Role of the achaete-scute complex genes in the development of the adult peripheral nervous system of Drosophila melanogaster S. Sotillos and S. Campuzano
Part IX. Vertebrate Cloning: 24. The conservation of the genome and nuclear reprogramming in Xenopus J. B. Gurdon
Part X. Cell Culture: 25. In vitro culture and differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells A. Rolletschek, C. Wiese and A. M. Wobus
Part XI. Evo-Devo Studies: 26. Microevolution between Drosophila species N. Skaer and P. Simpson
Part XII. Computational Modelling: 27. Theories as a tool to understand the complex network of molecular interactions M. Meinhardt
Appendices
Index.

Subject Areas: Developmental biology [PSC]