Introduction to Embryology
Yosef Tadesse
1
Outline
• Introduction
• Developmental periods
• Definition of Embryology
• Significance of Embryology
• Embryologic terminology
• Prenatal period
2
Learning Objectives
• Explain the developmental periods
• Define Embryology and Explain the
significance of it
• Define major embryologic terminologies
Introduction
• Human development is a continuous process that
begins when an oocyte (ovum) from a female is
fertilized by a sperm (spermatozoon) from a male
• Cell division, cell migration, programmed cell
death, differentiation, growth, and cell
rearrangement transform the fertilized oocyte, a
highly specialized, totipotent cell, a zygote, into
a multicellular human being
• Although most developmental changes occur
during the embryonic and fetal periods, important
changes occur during later periods of
development: infancy, childhood, adolescence,
and early adulthood
– Development does not stop at birth
4
Developmental periods
• Human development is divided into
– Prenatal (before birth) period
– Postnatal (after birth) period
• Most visible advances occur during
the third to eighth weeks of
embryonic development
• During the fetal period,
differentiation and growth of tissues
and organs occur
5
Definition of Embryology
• Literally, embryology means the study of embryos;
however, the term generally refers to prenatal
development of embryos and fetuses
• Developmental anatomy is the field of embryology
concerned with the changes that cells, tissues, organs,
and the body as a whole undergo from a germ cell of
each parent to the resulting adult
• Prenatal development is more rapid than postnatal
development and results in more striking changes
• Teratology is the division of embryology and
pathology that deals with abnormal development (birth
defects)
– concerned with various genetic and/or environmental factors
that disturb normal development and produce birth defects
6
Significance of Embryology
• Embryology is significant because it connects
basic science with clinical medicine—it explains
how a single fertilized cell becomes a complete
human being and why certain diseases or
malformations occur
• Its importance can be understood in several key
ways:
1. Understanding Normal Development
– Explains the sequential events from fertilization →
organogenesis → birth
– Helps identify the critical periods when organs are most
sensitive to damage
– Provides the framework to understand structural
relationships between organs
7
2. Explaining Congenital Anomalies
– Many birth defects (e.g., cleft lip, congenital
heart disease, spina bifida) are due to
developmental errors
– By knowing when and how structures form,
clinicians can pinpoint the stage when things
went wrong
3. Guiding Clinical Practice
– Prenatal diagnosis (ultrasound, amniocentesis,
chorionic villus sampling) interpretation depends
on embryological knowledge
– Surgical planning for neonates often requires
understanding embryonic origin of structures
– Aids in reconstructive surgery by tracing
developmental patterns (e.g., facial
reconstruction) 8
4. Understanding Evolution & Comparative
Anatomy
– Embryology shows common developmental patterns
across species, supporting evolutionary biology
– Helps researchers use animal models to study human
development and disease
5. Linking to Genetics & Molecular Biology
– Modern embryology integrates genetic regulation of
development (e.g., Hox genes, signaling pathways)
– Explains how mutations in specific genes lead to
predictable developmental outcomes
6. Applications in Regenerative Medicine
– Stem cell research and tissue engineering rely
heavily on embryological principles
– Understanding how tissues form in the embryo
helps guide attempts to repair or replace
damaged organs 9
Embryologic terminology
• Oocyte
– the female germ or sex cells
– produced in the ovaries
• Sperm or spermatozoon
– the male germ cell
– produced in the testes (testicles)
• Zygote
– a cell results from the union of an oocyte and a
sperm during fertilization
– a zygote is the beginning of a new human being
10
• Gestational Age
– It is difficult to determine exactly when
fertilization (conception) occurs because
the process cannot be observed in vivo
(within the living body)
– Physicians calculate the age of the
embryo or fetus from the presumed first
day of the last normal menstrual period.
This is the gestational age, which is
approximately 2 weeks longer than the
fertilization age because the oocyte is
not fertilized until approximately 2
weeks after the preceding menstruation
11
• Cleavage
– the series of mitotic cell divisions of the
zygote that result in the formation of
early embryonic cells, blastomeres
• Morula
– solid mass of 12 to 32 blastomeres
– formed by cleavage of a zygote
– occurs 3 to 4 days after fertilization, just
as the early embryo enters the uterus
12
• Blastocyst
– after 2 to 3 days, the morula enters the
uterus from the uterine tube
– soon a fluid-filled cavity, the blastocyst
cavity, develops inside it. This change
converts the morula into a blastocyst
– its centrally located cells, the inner cell
mass or embryoblast, is the embryonic
part of the embryo
13
• Implantation
– the process during which the blastocyst
attaches to the endometrium, the
mucous membrane or lining of uterus,
and subsequently embeds in it
– the preimplantation period of embryonic
development is the time between
fertilization and the beginning of
implantation, a period of approximately
6 days
14
15
• Gastrula
– during gastrulation (transformation of a
blastocyst into a gastrula), a three-layered or
trilaminar embryonic disc forms (third week)
– the three germ layers of the gastrula
(ectoderm, mesoderm, and endoderm)
subsequently differentiate into the tissues
and organs of the embryo
• Neurula
– the early embryo during the third and fourth
weeks when the neural tube is developing
from the neural plate
– it is the first appearance of the nervous
system and the next stage after the gastrula
16
• Embryo
– the developing human during the first
eight weeks of development
– the embryonic period extends to the end
of the eighth week (56 days), by which
time the beginnings of all major
structures are present
– the size of embryos is given as crown-
rump length, which is measured from the
vertex of the cranium (crown of head) to
the rump (buttocks)
17
• Conceptus
– the embryo and its adnexa (appendages
or adjunct parts) or associated
membranes (i.e., the products of
conception)
– the conceptus includes all structures that
develop from the zygote, both embryonic
and extraembryonic
– it includes the embryo as well as the
embryonic part of the placenta and its
associated membranes: amnion,
chorionic (gestational) sac, and umbilical
vesicle or yolk sac
18
• Primordium
– the beginning or first discernible
indication of an organ or structure
• Fetus
– the developing human from week 9 until
birth
– During the fetal period (ninth week to
birth), differentiation and growth of the
tissues and organs formed during the
embryonic period occur. These
developmental changes are not
dramatic.
19
Prenatal period
• 38 weeks
• From conception to birth
• Gynecologic timing is from LMP,
therefore it is 40 weeks ; gestational age
• Divided into
– Embryonic period – first 8 weeks; from
fertilization to day 56
– Fetal period - remaining 30 weeks; begins
on day 57 and ends when the fetus is
completely outside the mother
20
• Trimester
– A period of three calendar months
during a pregnancy
– obstetricians commonly divide the 9-
month period of gestation into three
trimesters
– the most critical stages of development
occur during the first trimester (13
weeks) when embryonic and early fetal
development is occurring
23
