Embryo Development:

Cleavage
Cleavage is an early embryonic phase
consisting of rapid mitotic cell division
without intervening growth periods
It resulting cell called blastomeres
Cleavage process also called Blastulation
It begin within an our after fertelization.
A. a cell zygote. The fertilization envelope is visible as a large "halo" around the embryo. The
arrow points to the site of sperm penetration. B. 2-cell. C. 8-cell. D. 16-cell. E. 32-cell. F.
Hatched blastula (F is courtesy Dr. Chuck Ettensohn ,
Cleavage Pattern

Cleavage pattern of different animal

are correlated with

Amount and distribution of

Polarity of egg
yolk in their egg
 Amount and distribution of
yolk in their egg

Lot of yolk in vegetal pole,

Little yolk, holoblastic
Holoblastic cleavage
cleavege produces
Produces different sized
similar sized blastomes
blastomeres

Amount of distribution of yolk in an egg have

major impact on it cleavage pattern.
 4 term of yolk
distribution

mesolecithal telolecithal

Isolecithal centrolecithal
Isolecithal

Egg that have a small amount of evenly

distributed yolk in the cytoplasm.
Eg: type of egg in the most echinoderms,
molluscs, ascidians & mammals.
Mesolecithal

Egg with moderate amount of yolk present

mostly in the vegetal hemisphere
Vegetal pole-mostly yolk. Cleavage
slower.
Animal pole-mostly cytoplasm
Eg. Amphibian egg
Telolecithal

Egg with large amount of yolk filling the

entire egg except for small area near the
animal pole
Eg; fish, reptiles and bird egg
Centrolecithal

Egg in which the yolk is concentrated in

the central cytoplasm are
Eg; the egg of all insect and many other
arthropods.
Polarity of egg

Animal pole: Vegetal pole:

Yolk free, faster Yolk rich, slower
cleavage free cleavage rate

Animal pole: Portion of embryo housing

primary tissue.
Vegetal pole: Portion of embryo containing yolk
Types of cleavage Depending on the amount and Pattern of yolk
and correlated with polarity of egg

Term of cleavage pattern

Holoblastic: Meroblastic:
Eggs cell are Eggs cell are
cleavage totally cleavage partially
 Holoblastic cleavage pattern
this term indicates that the entire egg is cleaved
during cytokinesis

Holoblastic
Cleavage
pattern

Radial cleavage Spiral cleavage

Eg: sea urchins, Eg: in moluscs &
amphibians Other group animal

Bilateral Cleavage Rotation cleavage

Eg: in ascidians Eg: in mammal
• There are 2 major types of meroblastic
cleavage:
i) Discoidal cleavage
-when it is limited to a disc of cytoplasm
at animal pole /restricted to a small disc
of yolk-free cytoplasm at the animal pole;
a large amount of yolk-rich cytoplasm at
the vegetal pole remain uncleaved

ex>fish,reptiles,bird
ii) superficial cleavage
-cytokinesis is limited to a surface layer
of clear cytoplasm while the yolk-rich
inner cytoplasm remains uncleaved
isolethical and mesolethical eggs undergo
a type of cleavage known as holoblastic
cleavage (whole germ)
teloethical characterized by discoidal
cleavage
Centrolethical eggs characterized by
superficial cleavage
CLEAVAGE PATTERNS OF
REPRESENTATIVE ANIMALS
Cleavage pattern of the:
-sea urchins
-molluscs
-amphibians
-chick/birds
-fish/zebrafish
-mammals
CLEAVAGE OF THE AMPHIBIANS
 Meroblastic, but the whole embryo does divide.
 Because of the yolk concentrated in the vegetal
pole, the cell divisions proceed more rapidly in
the animal pole.
 Leads to the production of large vegetal
macromeres and small animal micromeres.
 Blastocoele cavity becomes apparent at about
the 32-cell stage, although it actually begins to
form earlier
 CLEAVAGE DIVISION

8 cell frog embryo

 The first cleavage vertical through the animal and

vegetal poles.
 The 2nd cleavage vertical
 3rd cleavage horizontal but unequal
 Embryo consists of four smaller blastomeres at animal
poles and four larger blastomeres at the vegetal poles.
Early Frog Blastula
(surface view)
Early Frog Blastula
(sagittal section)
 DIFFERENCES BETWEEN CLEAVAGE OF
AMPHIBIANS AND THE OTHER ANIMALS

Animals
Amphibians Mammals Birds Chick
Characteristics

Types of Meroblastic Holoblastic Meroblastic Meroblastic

cleavage (discoidal) (discoidal)

Yolk Mesolechital Isolecithal Telolecithal Telolechital

distribution

Polarity of
eggs