A) Basic Concepts of Development

• Potency, commitment, specification, induction, competence, determination, and differentiation

• Morphogenetic gradients

• Cell fate and cell lineages

• Stem cells

• Genomic equivalence and cytoplasmic determinants

• Imprinting

• Use of mutants and transgenics in developmental analysis 

B) Gametogenesis, Fertilization, and Early Development

• Production of gametes

• Cell-surface molecules in sperm–egg recognition (animals)

• Embryo sac development and double fertilization (plants)

• Zygote formation, cleavage, blastula formation

• Embryonic fields and gastrulation; formation of germ layers (animals)

• Embryogenesis and establishment of symmetry (plants)

• Seed formation and germination 

C) Morphogenesis and Organogenesis in Animals

• Cell aggregation and differentiation in Dictyostelium

• Axes and pattern formation: Drosophila, amphibians, chick

• Organogenesis:

  • Vulva formation in C. elegans

  • Eye lens induction

  • Limb development and regeneration in vertebrates

• Differentiation of neurons

• Post-embryonic development: larval formation, metamorphosis

• Environmental regulation of normal development

• Sex determination mechanisms 

• D) Morphogenesis and Organogenesis in Plants

• Organization of shoot and root apical meristem

• Shoot and root development

• Leaf development and phyllotaxy

• Transition to flowering

• Floral meristem formation and floral development (e.g., Arabidopsis, Antirrhinum) 

E) Programmed Cell Death, Ageing, and Senescence

• Mechanisms of programmed cell death

• Concepts of ageing and senescence