Biological Sciences - Student Works
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Browsing Biological Sciences - Student Works by Author "Davis, Monica"
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Item The development of the chick embryo heart and using it as a model for atrial septal research(2022) Vignjevic, Mimi; Davis, MonicaAs an essential model organism, chicks can be used to study embryonic development. Information obtained by experiments can be applied to human development to understand how humans develop, processes and mechanisms that occur during human development, and possible sources of developmental disorders. Due to the rapid development of chick hearts, and similar developmental mechanism to human hearts, experiments performed on chick hearts can be applied to human heart development and be used to study human developmental disorders. Atrial septal defect is a common heart defect present at birth in humans, causing a hole in the septum of the heart. Using chicks, researchers can identify how heart structures move to form the septal hole, what genetic mutations or teratogens produce the defect, and potential mechanisms and treatments that can be used to prevent or treat atrial septal defect. Ultimately, chick heart research provides a more in depth understanding of human heart development which further provides the scientific community a greater understanding of general embryonic development.Item Neurodevelopmental effects of teratogens on chick embryos: a model organism for human health(2022) Slade, Sophia A.; Davis, MonicaThe chick embryo (Gallus gallus domesticus), and its extraembryonic membranes, have been a commonly used model organism in developmental biology due to it being relatively easy to manipulate, inexpensive, and widely available. Chickens are one of the most valuable model organisms for medical and biological research and have profoundly influenced developmental biology since the 20th century. After 24 hours of development (during gastrulation), the process of neurulation begins, with the cephalic region progressing faster than the caudal region. Signalling centres release morphogen transcripts to determine axis formation of the neural tube. Complete neurulation is essential for the proper development of the brain and spinal cord. Chickens share many morphological, genetic, and biochemical similarities with humans, making them an appropriate model organism to examine teratogenic actions and effects on human development. This paper examines the impact of teratogens of differing origins: viral infection (Zika virus), environmental pollutants (cadmium), and recreational drugs (alcohol) on neural development in early chick embryos. Due to the similarities between human and chick embryonic development, researchers can correlate the findings of neural tube alterations in chickens following teratogen exposure with human congenital malformations, providing insight into their causes and mechanisms.