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AnneMarie Woods

Professor Kunzinger

English 111 D23B

February 6, 2018

Development of a Human Fetus

Have you ever wondered how an entire human body is created from just a sperm and an

egg? Though many know about the process of fertilization, there is so much more to the

development of a fetus. There is a process known as embryogenesis that when it is carried out

perfectly with fertilization, the fetus is developed without complications.

Beginning with the sperm and the egg, fertilization marks the beginning of human

development. The sperm consists of two main parts; the flagellum, also known as the tail, uses

energy from the mitochondria to move the sperm up to the fallopian tubes, and the head carries a

nucleus with genetic material. The acrosome in the front of the head is filled with proteins (“Egg

meets sperm”). The egg has an outside jelly coat (“Human Fertilization”) known as the zona

pellucida, which is responsible for protecting the inner cell and mediating the initial meeting of

the sperm. Since the egg is much larger than the sperm, it is the main source of cytosol and

many organelles for the zygote, the diploid cell created after fusion (“Egg meets sperm”).

Once the sperm reaches the egg, it binds to the zona pellucida, triggering the acrosome

reaction thus releasing the enzymes in the acrosome. These enzymes then digest the zona

pellucida allowing the sperm to tunnel into the egg. The fusion of the two plasma membranes

cause the nucleus of DNA held in the sperm to be released into the egg. Cortical granules then

release enzymes that prevent polyspermy by creating a wall to prevent multiple sperm from

entering the cell (“Human Fertilization”). This then creates the zygote.
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The eight-week process of embryogenesis then begins starting with a process known as

cleavage. Cleavage is the rapid division of cells without growth. At the 8-cell stage, the cells

begin to compact until the 16-cell stage. Once 16 cells have been created, the zygote is now

called a morula. Morula is a Greek work meaning mulberry, because the cluster of cells have a

similar appearance to the berry (“Early Embryogenesis”).

Then, various cells begin to separation which is known as differentiation. This marks the

beginning of blastulation. The embryoblast is then created and surrounded by a group of cells

called the trophoblast. The cells within the embryoblast cluster together more creating the inner

cell mass and leaving a cavity known as the blastocoel. In this step, the zona pellucida also starts

to diminish changing the morula to the blastocyst (“Early Embryogenesis”).

In the next week, the inner mass creates a bilaminar disk consisting of the epiblast and

the hypoblast, and above the disk is a space known at the amniotic cavity. This disk and the

cavity will create the embryo and the yolk sac (Robertson). The cells in the epiblast start to

migrate creating the primitive streak and then begins gastrulation. In gastrulation the cells are

further divided into three germ layers known as the ectoderm, mesoderm, and the endoderm.

The ectoderm creates the epidermal tissue, the nervous tissue, the eyes, etcetera. The mesoderm

creates the dermis as well as the muscular and connective tissues. The endoderm creates the

lining of the digestive track and respiratory track, the liver, the pancreas, the bladder, the urethra,

the vagina, etcetera (LearningHCL). During gastrulation, the cell is known as the gastrula.

After gastrulation, inside the mesoderm a chord known as the notochord is created under

where the primitive streak was formed starting the process of neurulation, the last step of

embryogenesis. Once the notochord is formed, it causes the thickening of the ectoderm known

as the neural plate. The neural plate then forms a ring creating a tube that will dive into the
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mesoderm (Khan Academy, “Early Embryogenesis”). This is what will create the central

nervous system (“Neurulation”).

Over this eight-week process, the cells have divided, and the organs and other body

systems have started to develop. There are visible webbed fingers and toes, the eyelids almost

cover the eyes, the lungs are almost fully developed, and neural pathways have already begun to

form. At eight-weeks, the embryo becomes a fetus (“Your Pregnancy”).

Even though humans may start as just one cell, the body creates a wonderfully complex

fetus that creates the spectacular people in /the world we see today. Without the process of

fertilization and embryogenesis, humans would be unable to produce and thus unable to remain a

living organism.
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Works Cited

“Human Fertilization.” BioNinja, ib.bioninja.com.au/higher-level/topic-11-animal-physiology/114-

sexual-reproduction/human-fertilization.html.

Khan Academy. “Early Embryogenesis - Cleavage, Blastulation, Gastrulation, and Neurulation |

MCAT | Khan Academy.” YouTube, YouTube, 24 Oct. 2014,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=dAOWQC-OBv0.

Khan Academy. “Egg Meets Sperm.” Embryology, www.khanacademy.org/test-

prep/mcat/cells/embryology/a/egg-meets-sperm.

LearningHCL. “HCL Learning DigiSchool - Embryonic Development.” YouTube, YouTube, 18 Mar.

2013, www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgPCDXmcQjM.

“Neurulation.” BioNinja, ib.bioninja.com.au/options/option-a-neurobiology-and/a1-neural-

development/neurulation.html.

Robertson, Sally. “What Is Embryogenesis?” News-Medical.net, 21 Dec. 2014, www.news-

medical.net/health/What-is-Embryogenesis.aspx.

“Your Pregnancy: 8 Weeks.” BabyCenter, BabyCenter Medical Advisory Board, 24 Apr. 2017,

www.babycenter.com/6_your-pregnancy-8-weeks_1097.bc.