Developmental Biology quiz Flashcards

The two main types of cell interactions are herocrine and juxtacrine.

Animal cells move around to create specialized tissues, while plant cells expand in size to change shape and form.

Apoptosis is programmed cell death, and it is crucial for processes like the separation of digits in fingers.

Differential gene expression is the process by which cells with the same genetic makeup express different genes to become different cell types.

Transcription factors influence which genes are turned on or off in a cell.

Morphogens indicate cell position via concentration gradients, helping to determine cell fate and body axes.

Hox genes are a type of homeotic gene that control the development of specific anatomical structures along the anterior-posterior axis.

Fertilization, the fusion of sperm and egg, forms a zygote and triggers a series of reactions that prevent multiple sperm from entering the egg.

The cortical reaction releases calcium to depolarize the egg membrane, preventing additional sperm from fusing with the egg.

The anterior-posterior axis runs from the head (anterior) to the tail (posterior) of an organism.

The dorsal-ventral axis runs from the back (dorsal) to the belly (ventral) of an organism.

Highly conserved genes, like Hox genes, have been preserved through evolution and play crucial roles in development across different species.

Bicoid and Nanos create concentration gradients that help establish the head and abdomen regions in Drosophila embryos.

Gap genes help refine the broad strokes of body axis formation during early development.

Transcriptional regulation determines which genes are transcribed into mRNA, influencing the cell's phenotype.