ZOO100 – Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy and Phylogeny

Name/s: Ampo, J.C., Dolar, M.C., Du, A.J., Montero, J.L. Date October 28, 2021
Nagal, R.E.
Section ZOO 100-AB328 Instructor Prof. Thucydides
L. Salunga

Exercise 3 Chordate Embryology Part 1

I. Laboratory Output

1) Frog blastula stage- Structures: blastocoel, blastomeres, animal pole, vegetal pole,
micromeres, macromeres

STUDY QUESTIONS
a) Supply the terms describing the frog egg with regards to the following. Provide also a
brief definition of these terms.

Amount of yolk- The amount of yolk relates to the distribution of yolk in the cytoplasm,
which nourishes the chordate egg. Moreover, the quantity of yolk
varies. It might be Isolecithal eggs with minimal yolk, Telolecithal eggs
with moderate yolk, or Telolecithal eggs with a lot of yolk. In the case
of frog egg, it can be observed that it has a moderate amount of yolk.
Thus, the amount of its yolk is determined as Telolecithal eggs.

Distribution of yolk- The distribution of the yolk refers to the amount of yolk present in an
egg. The distribution of the yolk plays an significant role in the
formation of blastula or segmentation. More importantly, the
distribution of the yolk in frog eggs covers one-half of the egg.

Cleavage type- Cleavage type refers to the process of segmentation that allows these
eggs to undergo fertilization. Furthermore, frog eggs undergo
Holoblastic unequal cleavage since it can be observed that their
blastula consist of vegetal hemisphere and animal hemispehere.
Additionally, this can be supported by the amount of yolk present in
which an chordate egg with moderate amount of yolk will more likely
to undergo Holoblastic unequal cleavage.
2) Frog gastrula stage
Label the following structures where they are applicable. Take note that some structures
may not be present in both stages.

Structures: blastocoel, animal pole, vegetal pole, blastopore, ectoderm, mesoderm, endoderm,
dorsal lip of the blastopore, ventral lip of the blastopore, archenteron/gastrocoel,
yolk plug
3) Frog neurula stage
There are three subphases of neurulation: the neural plate stage, neural groove stage, and
neural tube stage. Write the specific neurula substage below each corresponding drawing. Label
also the following structures where they are applicable. Take note that some structures may not
be present in some stages.

Structures: epidermal ectoderm, neural ectoderm, mesoderm, endoderm,

archenteron/gastrocoel, notochord, neural plate, neural groove, neural ridges/folds,
neural tube, neurocoel

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4) Frog late organogenesis
Examine the serial sections of the 10-mm frog embryo at different levels from the most
anterior to the most posterior. Photomicrographs of each level are already provided. Label the
parts indicated for each level of the embryo.

4a) Level of the olfactory placode

• telencephalon
• telocoel
• olfactory placode
• epidermis
• pharynx
• cartilages

4b) Level of the optic cup

• diencephalon
• diocoel
• optic cup
• retina
• lens
• cornea
• pharynx
• cartilages
4c) Level of the heart
• rhombencephalon
• rhombocoel
• notochord
• otic vesicle
• pharynx
• internal gills
• atrium
• ventricle
• pericardial cavity

4d) Level of the lung buds

• rhombencephalon
• rhombocoel
• notochord
• somite
• nephros
• lung buds
• esophagus
• liver
• digestive tract
• peritoneal cavity

4e) Level of the hindgut

• dorsal fin
• spinal cord
• notochord
• somite
• Wolffian duct
• hindgut
• coelom
 STUDY QUESTIONS
b) Complete the table below by supplying the germ layer origin of the following structures.
Take note than these structures may originate from more than one germ layer in which
case you have to indicate all the apply.

STRUCTURE GERM LAYER ORIGIN STRUCTURE GERM LAYER ORIGIN

a. Epidermis Ectoderm l. Nephros Mesoderm
b. Telencephalon Ectoderm m. Lung buds Endoderm
c. Diencephalon Ectoderm n. Esophagus Endoderm
d. Rhombencephalon Ectoderm o. Stomach Endoderm
e. Spinal cord Ectoderm p. Intestine Endoderm
f. Optic lens Ectoderm q. Liver Endoderm
g. Optic cup Ectoderm r. Gall bladder Endoderm
h. Olfactory placode Ectoderm s. Hindgut Endoderm
i. Optic vesicle Ectoderm t. Dorsal fin Ectoderm
j. Heart Mesoderm u. Coelomic lining Endoderm
k. Muscle somite Mesoderm

5) 24-hour and 48-hour chick embryo

Examine the slides of the 24-hour and 48-hour chick embryo.

STUDY QUESTIONS
c) Write three features that distinguish the 24-hour from the 48-hour chick embryo.

Upon examining the features of the 24-hour and 48-hour chick embryo, it is noticeable that there are
differences between them:

1.First, the heart is not yet observable in a 24-hour chick embryo. Hence it slowly develops
in the 48-hour chick embryo.
2 Second, the head part of the 48-hour chick embryo is more developed with several
features distinguished from the 24-hour chick embryo, and one of these is the optic cup.
3 Lastly, the tail bud is noticeable in a 48-hour chick embryo compared to the 24-hour chick
embryo.

Label the following structures where they are applicable. Take note that some structures may not be
present in both stages.

Structures: area pellucida, prosencephalon, anterior neuropore, neural folds, primitive

streak, Hensen’s node, notochord, optic cup, telencephalon, diencephalon, mesencephalon,
metencephalon, myelencephalon, spinal cord, heart, lateral fold, spinal cord, lateral
mesoderm, tail bud