Chapter 5: Cleavage

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Results of Fertilization
Restoration of the diploid number of chromosomes
Determination of the sex of the new individual
Initiation of cleavage

Chapter 5:
Cleavage
Gerald M. Salas, MS
Department of Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
Pampanga State Agricultural University

Cleavage
Cleavage is a series of mitotic divisions that results in an increase
in cells, blastomeres, which become smaller with each division.
After three divisions, blastomeres undergo compaction to
become a tightly grouped ball of cells with inner and outer layers.

Cleavage

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Compacted blastomeres divide to form a 16-cell morula. As the

morula, enters the uterus on the third or fourth day after
fertilization, a cavity begins to appear, and the blastocystforms.
The inner cell mass, which is formed at the time of compaction
and will develop into the embryo proper, is at one pole of the
blastocyst. The outer cell mass, which surrounds the inner cells
and the blastocyst cavity, will form the trophoblast.

Chapter 5: Cleavage

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Cleavage
Once the zygote has reached the two-cell stage, it undergoes a series of
mitotic divisions, increasing the numbers of cells. These cells, which become
smaller with each cleavage division, are known as blastomeres. Until the
eight-cell stage, they form a loosely arranged clump.
After the third cleavage, however, blastomeres maximize their contact with
each other, forming a compact ball of cells held together by tight junctions.
This process, compaction, segregates inner cells, which communicate
extensively by gap junctions, from outer cells.

Approximately 3 days after fertilization, cells of the compacted embryo divide

again to form a 16-cell morula(mulberry). Inner cells of the morula constitute
the inner cell mass, and surrounding cells compose the outer cell mass. The
inner cell mass gives rise to tissues of the embryo proper, and the outer cell
mass forms the trophoblast, which later contributes to the placenta.

Blastocyst Formation
About the time the morula enters the uterine cavity, fluid begins to
penetrate through the zona pellucida into the intercellular spaces of the
inner cell mass. Gradually, the intercellular spaces become confluent,
and finally, a single cavity, the blastocele, forms.
At this time, the embryo is a blastocyst. Cells of the inner cell mass,
now called the embryoblast, are at one pole, and those of the outer cell
mass, or trophoblast, flatten and form the epithelial wall of the
blastocyst.
The zona pellucida has disappeared, allowing implantation to begin.

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Chapter 5: Cleavage

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Cleavage Patterns
The resulting tightly packed mass of about 32 cells is
called a morula,and each individual cell in the morula
is referred to as a blastomere.

Cleavage Patterns

As the blastomeres continue to divide,they secrete a

fluid into the center of the morula. Eventually, a
hollow ball of 500 to 2000 cells, the blastula,is
formed.
The fluid-filled cavity within the blastula is known as
the blastocoel.

Eggs
Isolecithal/Microlecithal - The yolk is evenly distributed, so the
cleavage of the egg cell cuts through and divides the egg into
cells of fairly similar sizes.
Mesolecithal - The yolk is concentrated in one part of the egg (the
vegetal pole), with the cell nucleus and most of the cytoplasm in
the other (the animal pole).
Macrolecithal - Eggs with a large yolk
Telolecithal - The yolk is concentrated at one pole of the egg separate from
the developing embryo.
Centrolecithal - the placement of the yolk in the centre of the cytoplasm of
ovums

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Chapter 5: Cleavage

Holoblastic Cleavage
Holoblastic cleavage occurs when the cleavage furrows pass
through the entire egg
Cleavage can either be equal, where the resulting cells
contain the same amount of yolk, or unequal, in which some
cells contain more yolk than others:

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Holoblastic with Isolecithal eggs

Observed in eggs with low amounts of yolk.
Yolk homogeneously distributed in egg and
blastomeres are often the same size.

equal cleavage occurs in microlecithal eggs

unequal cleavage occurs in mesolecithal eggs

cleavage results in the formation of a ball of cells

(blastomeres) surrounding an internal cavity (blastocoel)

Holoblastic with mesolecithal eggs.

Yolk is distributed heterogeneously (concentrated in
the vegetal pole).

Meroblastic Cleavage
Meroblastic cleavage occurs more in macrolecithal
eggs
cleavage takes place only in a disk at the animal pole
the cleavage furrows do not extend into the yolk

results in the formation of the blastodisc that lies on

the top of the yolk

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Chapter 5: Cleavage

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Meroblastic Cleavage
Incomplete cleavage with telolecithal and centrolecithal yolk distribution
The eggs produced by reptiles, birds, and some fish are composed almost
entirely of yolk, with a small amount of cytoplasm concentrated at one
pole.

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