Embryology

Explore the curriculum

• Foundations of embryology

  Place human development in time while mastering embryological vocabulary and the principles of meiosis.

• Mitosis and meiosis

  Two cell-division programmes: preservation of the diploid genome by mitosis, then reduction, recombination, and gamete production by meiosis.

• Oogenesis and folliculogenesis

  Follow the origin, chronology, meiotic divisions, follicular maturation, and regulation of the female germ line.

• Spermatogenesis: the male germ line

  Describe sperm production, maturation, kinetics and endocrine regulation.

• Ovulation and the oocyte

  Understand the LH surge, release of the secondary oocyte and the properties of the cell that may be fertilized.

• The spermatozoon: structure and biology

  Relate the specialized architecture, maturation, transit, survival and semen-analysis findings of the spermatozoon.

• Stem cells: potential, origins and therapeutic relevance

  Understand stem-cell self-renewal, differentiation and potency, then compare embryonic, fetal and adult sources and their therapeutic uses.

• The first week of embryonic development

  Relate sperm transit, fertilization, cleavage and tubal migration from gametes to blastocyst during the first seven days.

• The second week of embryonic development

  Follow implantation and the transformations that organize the blastocyst into a bilaminar embryo and early extraembryonic structures from day 8 to day 15.

• The third week of embryonic development

  Follow gastrulation, notochord formation, neural induction and evolution of the embryonic annexes.

• The fourth week of embryonic development

  Follow embryonic folding, neurulation and the first organ primordia from the third to the fourth week.

• The pharyngeal apparatus: arches, pouches and pharyngeal floor

  Understand the transient pharyngeal apparatus and its craniofacial, cervical and thyroid derivatives.

• Embryonic annexes: placenta, amnion and umbilical cord

  Describe the constitution, development and functions of the placenta, amnion, yolk sac, allantois and umbilical cord.

• Congenital malformations: causes, examples, and prenatal diagnosis

  Understand how congenital malformations arise, recognize their major categories, and learn how they can be detected before birth.