Developmental biology
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[[Image:Views of a Foetus in the Womb.jpg|thumb|right|300px|"Views of a Fetus in the Womb", [[Leonardo da Vinci]], ca. 1510-1512. The subject of [[prenatal development]] is a major subset of developmental biology.]]
'''Developmental biology''' is the study of the process by which organisms grow and develop. Modern developmental biology studies the genetic control of [[cell growth]], [[cellular differentiation|differentiation]] and "[[morphogenesis]]," which is the process that gives rise to [[biological tissue|tissue]]s, [[organ (anatomy)|organ]]s and [[anatomy]].
==Related fields of study==
[[Embryology]] is a subfield, the study of organisms between the one-cell stage (generally, the [[zygote]]) and the end of the embryonic stage, which is ''not'' necessarily the beginning of a free living organism. Embryology was originally a more descriptive science until the 20th century. Embryology and developmental biology today deal with the various steps necessary for the correct and complete formation of the [[body]] of a living organism.
The related field of [[evolutionary developmental biology]] was formed largely in the 1990s and is a [[synthesis]] of findings from molecular developmental biology and [[evolutionary biology]] which considers the diversity of organismal form in an evolutionary context.
==Perspectives==
The findings of developmental biology can help to understand developmental malfunctions such as [[chromosomal aberration]]s, for example, [[Down syndrome]]. An understanding of the specialization of [[Cell (biology)|cells]] during embryogenesis may yield information on how to specialize [[stem cell]]s to specific tissues and organs, which could lead to the specific [[cloning]] of organs for medical purposes. Another biologically important process that occurs during development is [[apoptosis]] - programmed cell death or "suicide". For this reason, many developmental models are used to elucidate the [[physiology]] and molecular basis of this cellular process. Similarly, a deeper understanding of developmental biology can foster greater progress in the treatment of [[congenital]] disorders and diseases, e.g. studying [[human sex determination]] can lead to treatment for disorders such as [[congenital adrenal hyperplasia]].
==Concepts in developmental biology==
<div style="-moz-column-count:4; column-count:4;">
*[[allantois]]
*[[amnion]]
*[[blastocyst]]
*[[blastomere]]
*[[blastula]]
*[[chorion]]
*[[Pupa|chrysalis]]
*[[cleavage (embryo)|cleavage]]
*[[Cellular differentiation|differentiation]]
*[[embryo]]
*[[embryogenesis]]
*[[embryology]]
*[[fetus]]
*[[gastrulation]]
*[[germ layer]]
*[[germ plasm]]
*[[germination]]
*[[induction (biology)|induction]]
*[[juvenile (organism)|juvenile]]
*[[larva]]
*[[maternal effect]]
*[[metamorphosis (biology)|metamorphosis]]
*[[genome]]
*[[morphogenesis]]
*[[morula]]
*[[neoteny]]
*[[neural development]]
*[[nymph (biology)|nymph]]
*[[ontogeny]]
*[[paedogenesis]]
*[[pangenesis]]
*[[phylogeny]]
*[[primordium]]
*[[pupa]]
*[[rudiment (biology)|rudiment]]
*[[seed]]
*[[self-organization]]
*[[teratology]]
*[[zygote]]
</div>
==Developmental model organisms==
Often used [[model organism]]s in developmental biology include the following:
* Vertebrates
** Zebrafish ''[[Danio rerio]]''
** Medakafish ''[[Oryzias latipes]]''
** Fugu ''[[Takifugu rubripes]]''
** [[Frog]]s ''[[Xenopus laevis]]''
** Chicken ''[[Gallus gallus]]''
** Mouse ''[[Mus musculus]]'' ([[Mammalian embryogenesis]])
* Invertebrates
** [[Lancelet]] ''Branchiostoma lanceolatum''
** [[Tunicates]]
** [[Sea urchin]]
** Round worm ''[[Caenorhabditis elegans]]''
** Fruit fly ''[[Drosophila melanogaster]]'' ([[Drosophila embryogenesis]])
* Plants ([[Plant embryogenesis]])
** ''[[Arabidopsis thaliana]]''
** [[Maize]]
** [[Snapdragon]]
==Developmental systems biology==
Computer simulation of multicellular development is a research methodology to understand the function of the very complex processes involved in the development of organisms. This includes simulation of cell signaling, multicell interactions and regulatory genomic networks in development of multicellular structures and processes (see [[List of publications in biology#Developmental biology|''Biological Physics of the Developing Embryo'']]). ''[[Genomes#Minimal genomes|Minimal genomes]]'' for minimal multicellular organisms may pave the way to understand such complex processes ''in vivo''.
==See also==
* [[Evolutionary developmental biology]]
* [[altricial]] and [[precocial]]
* [[auxology]]
* [[fish development]]
* [[List of publications in biology#Developmental biology|Important publications in developmental biology]]
* [[Plant Evolutionary Developmental Biology]]
* [[embryogenesis]]
* [[morphogenesis]]
* [[Body plan]]
* [[Cell signaling]]
* [[Signal transduction]]
* [[Cell signaling networks]]
* [[Transcription factor]]
* [[Enhancer]]
* [[Enhanceosome]]
* [[Promoter]]
* [[Gene regulatory network]]
* [[Developmental Noise]]
==Sources==
{{Wikibooks}}
* [http://developmentalbiology.de/en/ Developmental Biology of Plants and Animals]
* [http://8e.devbio.com Developmental Biology - 8th Edition] by Scott Gilbert (online textbook)
*[http://www.sdbonline.org/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=23 Virtual Library - Developmental Biology]
*[http://www.bionews.in/index.php/archives/category/developmental-biology/ Latest Developmental Biology News]
* [http://www.eb.tuebingen.mpg.de/ Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology] (Tübingen, Germany)
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{{Developmental biology}}
{{Embryology}}
{{Humandevelopment}}
[[Category:Developmental biology|*]]
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