Articles
Ross Granville Harrison (1870-1959)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
A pioneer in experimental embryology, Ross Granville Harrison made numerous discoveries that advanced biology. One of the most significant was his adaptation of the hanging drop method from bacteriology to carry out the first tissue culture.
Created 2007-09-01. Modified 2 years ago.Thomas Hunt Morgan (1866-1945)
By Mary E. Sunderland
Although best known for his work with the fruit fly, for which he earned a Nobel Prize and the title "The Father of Genetics," Thomas Hunt Morgan's contributions to biology reach far beyond genetics.
Created 2007-09-25. Modified 2 years ago.Charles Manning Child (1869-1954)
By Mary E. Sunderland
Born in Ypsilanti, Michigan, on 2 February 1869, Charles Manning Child was the only surviving child of Mary Elizabeth and Charles Chauncey Child, a prosperous, old New England family. Growing up in Higganum, Connecticut, Child was interested in biology from an early age.
Created 2007-10-23. Modified 2 years ago.The Marine Biological Laboratory Embryology Course
By Jane Maienschein
The Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole, Massachusetts, began in 1888 to offer opportunities for instruction and research in biological topics.
Created 2007-10-24. Modified 2 years ago."Proliferation, Differentiation and Degeneration in the Spinal Ganglia of the Chick Embryo under Normal and Experimental Conditions" (1949), by Viktor Hamburger and Rita Levi-Montalcini
By Adam R. Navis
In this paper Viktor Hamburger and Rita Levi-Montalcini collaborated to examine the effects of limb transplantation and explantation on neural development. In 1947 Hamburger invited Levi-Montalcini to his lab at Washington University in St. Louis to examine this question.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Organisers and Genes (1940), by Conrad Hal Waddington
By Adam R. Navis
Conrad Hal Waddington's Organisers and Genes, published in 1940, is a summary of available research and theoretical framework for many concepts related to tissue differentiation in the developing embryo. The book is composed of two main conceptual sections.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."In vitro Experiments on the Effects of Mouse Sarcomas 180 and 37 on the Spinal and Sympathetic Ganglia of the Chick Embryo" (1954), by Rita Levi-Montalcini, Viktor Hamburger, and Hertha Meyer
By Adam R. Navis
"In vitro Experiments on the Effects of Mouse Sarcomas 180 and 37 on the Spinal and Sympathetic Ganglia of the Chick Embryo" were experiments conducted by Rita Levi-Montalcini in conjunction with Viktor Hamburger and Hertha Meyer and published in Cancer Research in 1954.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."Experiments on Embryonic Induction III. A Note on Inductions by Chick Primitive Streak Transplanted to the Rabbit Embryo" (1934), by Conrad Hal Waddington
By Adam R. Navis
Conrad Hal Waddington's "Experiments on Embryonic Induction III," published in 1934 in the Journal of Experimental Biology, describes the discovery that the primitive streak induces the mammalian embryo.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Quickening
By Katherine Brind'Amour
Quickening, the point at which a pregnant woman can first feel the movements of the growing embryo or fetus, has long been considered a pivotal moment in pregnancy.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."Interspecific Chimeras in Mammals: Successful Production of Live Chimeras Between Mus musculus and Mus caroli" (1980), by Janet Rossant and William I. Frels
By Nicole Newkirk
In 1980 Janet Rossant and William I. Frels published their paper, "Interspecific Chimeras in Mammals: Successful Production of Live Chimeras Between Mus musculus and Mus caroli," in Science. Their experiment involved the first successful creation of interspecific mammalian chimeras.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Nerve Growth Factor
By Adam R. Navis
Nerve growth factor (NGF) is a signaling protein and growth factor implicated in a wide range of development and maintenance functions. NGF was discovered through a series of experiments in the 1950s on the development of the chick nervous system.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."Purification of a Nerve-Growth Promoting Protein from the Mouse Salivary Gland and its Neuro-Cytoxic Antiserum" (1960), by Stanley Cohen
By Adam R. Navis
Stanley Cohen published "Purification of a Nerve-Growth Promoting Protein from the Mouse Salivary Gland and its Neuro-Cytoxic Antiserum" in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences in 1960.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Chemical Induction
By Adam R. Navis
Research in chemical induction seeks to identify the compound or compounds responsible for differentiation in a developing embryo. Soren Lovtrup compared the search for these compounds to the search for the philosopher's stone.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."Selective Growth Stimulating Effects of Mouse Sarcoma on the Sensory and Sympathetic Nervous System of the Chick Embryo" (1951), by Rita Levi-Montalcini and Viktor Hamburger
By Adam R. Navis
In "Selective Growth Stimulating Effects of Mouse Sarcoma on the Sensory and Sympathetic Nervous System of the Chick Embryo," Rita Levi-Montalcini and Viktor Hamburger explored the effects of two nerve growth stimulating tumors; mouse sarcomas 180 and 37.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago."A Series of Normal Stages in the Development of the Chick Embryo" (1951), by Viktor Hamburger and Howard L. Hamilton
By Adam R. Navis
The developmental stages of the chick embryo were examined by Viktor Hamburger and Howard L. Hamilton in "A Series of Normal Stages in the Development of the Chick Embryo," published in the Journal of Morphology in 1951.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Epigenetic Landscape
By Adam R. Navis
The epigenetic landscape is a concept representing embryonic development. It was proposed by Conrad Hal Waddington to illustrate the various developmental pathways a cell might take toward differentiation.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Syncytial Theory
By Adam R. Navis
The syncytial theory of neural development was proposed by Victor Hensen in 1864 to explain the growth and differentiation of the nervous system. This theory has since been discredited, although it held a significant following at the turn of the twentieth century.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Epidermal Growth Factor
By Adam R. Navis
Epidermal growth factor is a signaling molecule that stimulates the growth of epidermal tissues during development and throughout life. Stanley Cohen discovered epidermal growth factor (EGF) during studies of nerve growth factor as a side effect of other experiments.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Mizuko Kuyo
By Katherine Brind'Amour, Benjamin Garcia
Mizuko Kuyo is a Japanese Buddhist ceremony that focuses on a deceased fetus or stillborn child. This ceremony was originally developed to honor Jizo, a god believed to be responsible for transporting dead fetuses or children to the other world.
Created 2007-10-30. Modified 2 years ago.Karl Ernst von Baer (1792-1876)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Best known for his contributions to the field of embryology, Karl Ernst von Baer also pursued a variety of other areas of study including medicine, botany, zoology, and anthropology.
Created 2007-10-31. Modified 2 years ago.Abraham Trembley (1710-1784)
By Mary E. Sunderland
Abraham Trembley's discovery of the remarkable regenerative capacity of the hydra caused many to question their beliefs about the generation of organisms.
Created 2007-10-31. Modified 2 years ago.Jan Swammerdam (1637-1680)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Jan Swammerdam, known as the founder of the preformation theory based on his extensive research on insect development, was born on 12 February 1637 in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, to Baertje Jans Corvers and Jan Jacobszoon Swammerdam.
Created 2007-10-31. Modified 2 years ago.Samuel Randall Detwiler (1890-1957)
By Adam R. Navis
Samuel Randall Detwiler was an embryologist who studied neural development in embryos and vertebrate retinas.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Antoni van Leeuwenhoek (1632-1723)
By Kristin Bolfert
Antoni van Leeuwenhoek was born in Delft, the Netherlands, on 24 October 1632 to Margriet Jacobsdochter van den Berch and Philips Thooniszoon, both of whom were middle-class artisans. He attended grammar school in Warmond, and then temporarily moved to Benthuizen to live with relatives.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Libbie Henrietta Hyman (1888-1969)
By Kristin Bolfert
Libbie Henrietta Hyman was born into a recently immigrated Jewish family on 6 December 1888 in Des Moines, Iowa.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Stanley Cohen (1922- )
By Adam R. Navis
Stanley Cohen is a biochemist who participated in the discovery of nerve growth factor (NGF) and epidermal growth factor (EGF). He shared the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Rita Levi-Montalcini for their work on the discovery of growth factors.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Francesco Redi (1626-1698)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Francesco Redi, son of Florentine physician Cecilia de' Ghinci and Gregorio Redi, was born in Arezzo, Italy, on 18 February 1626. He studied philosophy and medicine at the University of Pisa, graduating on 1 May 1647.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Franklin Paine Mall (1862-1917)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Franklin Paine Mall was born into a farming family in Belle Plaine, Iowa, on 28 September 1862. While he attended a local academy, an influential teacher fueled Mall's interest in science. From 1880-1883, he studied medicine at the University of Michigan, attaining his MD degree in 1883.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Karl Wilhelm Theodor Richard von Hertwig (1850-1937)
By Katherine Brind'Amour, Benjamin Garcia
Karl Wilhelm Theodor Richard von Hertwig is an important figure in the history of embryology for his contributions of artificial hybridization of sea urchin eggs and the formulation of his coelom theory. He was born 23 September 1850 in Friedelberg, Germany, to Elise Trapp and Carl Hertwig.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Florence Rena Sabin (1871-1953)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Florence Rena Sabin had successful careers as both a researcher and public health reformer. When Johns Hopkins University Medical School opened, accepting women and men on the same basis, Sabin was one of the first to enter.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.St. Augustine (354-430)
By Katherine Brind'Amour
St. Augustine of Hippo, born Aurelius Augustinus to a respectable family in the year 354 CE, is now considered one of the foremost theologians in the history of the Catholic Church.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Warren Harmon Lewis (1870-1964)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
As one of the first to work at the Carnegie Institution of Washington Department of Embryology, Warren Harmon Lewis made a number of contributions to the field of embryology.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch (1867-1941)
By Mary E. Sunderland
Although educated as a scientist who studied with both August Weismann and Ernst Heinrich Haeckel, Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch was first employed as a professor of philosophy and became a strong proponent of vitalism.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Lazzaro Spallanzani (1729-1799)
By Mary E. Sunderland
Lazzaro Spallanzani's imaginative application of experimental methods, mastery of microscopy, and wide interests led him to significant contributions in natural history, experimental biology, and physiology.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Joseph Needham (1900-1995)
By Adam R. Navis
Joseph Needham was an embryologist and biochemist who is most noted in science for his studies on induction in developing embryos. Needham worked with Conrad Hal Waddington to attempt to identify the compound responsible for the organizer's activity.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Wilhelm His, Sr. (1831-1904)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Wilhelm His, Sr. was born on 9 July 1831 in Basel, Switzerland, to Katharina La Roche and Eduard His. He began his medical studies at Basel in 1849 and later transferred to the University of Bern during the winter semester of 1849-1850.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.George Linius Streeter (1873-1948)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
George Linius Streeter was born on 12 January 1873 in Johnstown, New York, to Hannah Green Anthony and George Austin Streeter. He completed his undergraduate studies at Union College in 1895 and received his MD degree from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Columbia University in 1899.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Wilhelm August Oscar Hertwig (1849-1922)
By Katherine Brind'Amour, Benjamin Garcia
Wilhelm August Oscar Hertwig contributed to embryology through his studies of cells in development and his discovery that only one spermatozoon is necessary to fertilize an egg. He was born 21 April 1849 to Elise Trapp and Carl Hertwig in Hessen, Germany.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.Jane Marion Oppenheimer (1911-1966)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Jane Marion Oppenheimer, embryologist and historian of science and medicine, was born on 19 September 1911 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Sylvia Stern and James H. Oppenheimer. After studying zoology at Bryn Mawr College, Oppenheimer received her AB degree in 1932.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago.George Washington Corner (1889-1981)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
As the third director of the Carnegie Institute of Washington s Department of Embryology, George Washington Corner made a number of contributions to the life sciences as well as to administration.
Created 2007-11-01. Modified 2 years ago."Experiments on the Development of Chick and Duck Embryos, Cultivated in vitro" (1932), by Conrad Hal Waddington
By Adam R. Navis
Conrad Hal Waddington's "Experiments on the Development of Chick and Duck Embryos, Cultivated in vitro," published in 1932 in Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, Series B, compares the differences in the development of birds and amphibians.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.Robert William Briggs (1911-1983)
By Adam R. Navis
Robert William Briggs was a prolific developmental biologist. However, he is most identified with the first successful cloning of a frog by nuclear transplantation. His later studies focused on the problem of how genes influence development.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.John Charles Rock (1890-1984)
By Kimberly A. Buettner
Born on 24 March 1890 in Marlborough, Massachusetts, to Ann and Frank Rock, John Charles Rock was both a devout Catholic and one of the leading investigators involved in the development of the first oral contraceptive pill. In 1925 he married Anna Thorndike, with whom he later had five children.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.Rita Levi-Montalcini (1909-2012)
By Adam R. Navis
Rita Levi-Montalcini is a Nobel Laureate recognized for her work in the discovery and characterization of nerve growth factor. Nerve growth factor (NGF) promotes the growth and maintenance of the nervous system in a developing system.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago."Experiments in Transplanting Limbs and Their Bearing Upon the Problems of the Development of Nerves" (1907), by Ross Granville Harrison
By Adam R. Navis
In his 1907 paper, "Experiments in Transplanting Limbs and Their Bearing Upon the Problems of the Development of Nerves," in the Journal of Experimental Zoology that he edited, Ross Granville Harrison tested the development of nerves in transplanted tissue.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.Hanging Drop Tissue Culture
By Adam R. Navis
The hanging drop tissue culture is a technique utilized in embryology and other fields to allow growth that would otherwise be restricted by the flat plane of culture dishes and also to minimize the surface area to volume ratio, slowing evaporation.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.Katharine McCormick (1876-1967)
By Aliya Buttar
Katharine Dexter McCormick, who contributed the majority of funding for the development of the oral contraceptive pill, was born to Josephine and Wirt Dexter on 27 August 1875 in Dexter, Michigan.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.Viktor Hamburger (1900-2001)
By Adam R. Navis
Viktor Hamburger was an embryologist who focused on neural development. His scientific career stretched from the early 1920s as a student of Hans Spemann to the late 1980s at Washington University resolving the role of nerve growth factor in the life of neurons.
Created 2007-11-08. Modified 2 years ago.