The Arabidopsis zygote divides asymmetrically into an embryonic apical cell and a basal cell with mostly extra-embryonic fate. This fundamental asymmetry sets the stage for further embryonic development, but the events mediating it are poorly understood. We have identified a MAPKK kinase gene, named YODA, that promotes extra-embryonic cell fates in the basal lineage. In loss-of-function mutants...

Embryo culture can serve as a strong diagnostic tool, yielding useful information regarding the implantation potential of the human embryo. The information thus gained is useful for quality control of the embryology laboratory, success rates of the IVF/intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) programme, and counselling of the couple following failed cycles. Zygotes can be scored and zygote quali...

The development of lotic-breeding Bufo torrenticola is described from zygote to completion metamorphosis in captivity at 13±1°C. We delimit 56 developmental stages based on external features. describe so as be comparable common that are widely used for anurans. also compare the larval between B. lotic water and lentic water, with lentic-breeding japonicus formosus water. Our results suggest tad...

Screening for suppressor mutations is a powerful method to isolate genes that function in a common pathway or process. Because suppressor mutations often do not have phenotypes on their own, cloning of suppressor loci can be challenging. A method combining whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) mapping (WGS/SNP mapping) was developed to identify mutations with vi...