Becoming organisms: the organisation of development and the development of organisation

Despite the radical importance of embryology in the development of organicism, developmental biology remains philosophically underexplored as a theoretical and empirical resource to clarify the nature of organisms. This paper discusses how embryology can help develop the organisational definition of the organism as a differentiated, functionally integrated, and autonomous system. I distinguish two conceptions of development in the organisational tradition that yield two different conceptions of the organism: the life-history view claims that organisms can be considered as such during their whole ontogeny; the constitutive view distinguishes two periods in the life history, a period of generation and a period of self-maintenance of a constitutive organisation. Arguing in favour of the constitutive view, it will be claimed that the organisational criteria for the definition of organism (i.e., differentiation, functional integration, and autonomy) can only be applied to the developmental system when it has entered the period of self-maintenance of a constitutive organisation. Under the light of current research in developmental biology, it is possible to make explicit how organisms come to be as organisms. To this end, I explore key ontogenetic events that help us clarify the core aspects of animal organisation and allow us to identify the developmental stage that marks the ontological transition between an organism in potency and an organism in actuality. The structure of this ontogenetic unfolding parallels the conceptual structure of the very notion of organism; the generation of the being of a particular organism parallels its definition.     

国家级经济技术开发区绿色发展指数研究

国家级经济技术开发区是改革开放以来中国经济发展的缩影,已成为中国推动开放型经济发展,促进工业化、城镇化进程,实现区域发展战略的重要支撑。处理好经济发展与节约资源、保护环境的关系,实现绿色、低碳、循环发展,提高发展的质量和效益,是国家级经开区在新形势下面临的新挑战。为推进国家级经开区的创新驱动和绿色发展,加强对国家级经开区绿色低碳循环发展的引导,通过建立绿色发展指数方法,对国家级经开区的绿色发展水平进行评价,以期为管理决策提供参考。绿色发展水平定量评价研究运用多准则排序方法构建了绿色发展指数。首先从经济发展、资源能源消耗、生态环境和基础设施4个方面构建了国家级经开区绿色发展评价指标体系,其次对各项指标进行归一化处理,加权后得到绿色发展指数。以2007年52家国家级经开区各项指标(基于不变价格的平均值)为参照,分析了2007—2012年52家国家级经开区绿色发展指数的动态变化,采用动态气泡图直观地表征年际间经开区绩效的横向和纵向变化。比较了东中西部国家级经开区绿色发展水平的差异,及建设国家生态工业示范园区对其绿色发展指数的影响,进而对国家级经开区的绿色发展进行了展望。     

黄河流域可持续发展评估及协同发展策略

作为我国重要的生态屏障和经济带,黄河流域生态保护和高质量发展是我国的重大战略需求。目前,黄河流域水资源利用效率较低、水资源配置不甚合理等问题,阻碍了流域整体的可持续发展。以黄河流域上、中、下游9个省份作为研究对象,引入目标间均衡度这一新的评估方法,通过分析上中下游在可持续发展目标达成状况、发展路径、对黄河水资源的依赖程度和工农业用水效率等方面的差异,探讨了基于水资源优化利用的协同发展策略。研究结果表明：(1)2000—2015年间,黄河九省的可持续发展指数都有了显著提高,在不考虑各可持续发展目标间的均衡度时,中下游地区的可持续发展状况显著优于上游地区,考虑均衡度后则未发现显著差异;(2)忽略均衡度对评估结果带来的偏差也体现在省级层面上,如宁夏和山西在不考虑均衡度时都被认为取得了良好的发展,但实际上两者的发展主要体现在少部分目标上,和环境保护相关的部分目标反而出现了退步,这说明不考虑均衡度可能会高估可持续发展目标达成度;(3)黄河流域上中下游均有对黄河水资源较为依赖的省份,这些省份间工农业用水量和用水效率等存在较大差异,总体来看,上游地区用水效率较低,中下游地区用水效率较高;(4)取水量...     

Several aspects of the problem of the development of hormonal regulation during prenatal development

Some general aspects of the problem of hormonal control mechanisms in prenatal life are discussed. An analysis is performed on the basis of both the literary and author's data pertaining to the development of hypothalamo-hypophysial-adrenal, hypothalamo-hypophysial-thyroid and hypothalamo-hypophysial-gonadal functions during the foetal life. Experimental evidences of the activity of these functions in foetuses are provided. Neuroendocrine mechanisms are considered as a system of coordinated and intercontrolling links where the relative autonomy, the self-regulation of lower levels is coupled with the centralized control of higher levels. A concept is put forward to the effect that interactions between individual links play an important part in the formation of these mechanisms. If it is so, organizing influences, or stimuli, may emanate both from higher levels of control towards the lower ones and vice versa. Hormonal influences in early ontogenesis are characterized by the fact that, besides direct effects at the same developmental stage, they ensure the maturation of higher levels of neuroendocrine mechanisms which perform hormonal control in adults.     

The evolution of the development

The evolution of development required few new features not already present in the eukaryotic cell, as exemplified by the cell cycle. Moreover, the protozoa possess many features of spatial organization and regulation present in metazoan embryos.
The earliest multicellular organism could have been reproduced by a stem cell mechanism or by fission, the latter requiring cell-to-cell interactions that may have favoured cell-interactions and regulation. Regeneration can be considered as a meta-phenomenon related to asexual reproduction and retention of embryonic characters. The origin of embryonic structures like the gastrula may be accounted for in terms of Haeckel's 'Gastrea' theory. Mechanisms based on selection at the level of cell lineage are rejected.
It is not clear what selective forces act on development itself, as distinct from the requirement for reliably producing a functional orgainsm. There is, for example, a major problem why gastrulation should be so variable in related animals. Selection for rate of development in relation to energy utilization may play a role. If many variants are neutral this may facilitate the evolution of novelty.
In general terms there is a requirement for a continuity principle for the evolution of each form in development. Most groups pass through a phylotypic stage with considerable diversity before and after.     

Neural development features: spatio-temporal development of the Caenorhabditis elegans neuronal network

The nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, with information on neural connectivity, three-dimensional position and cell linage, provides a unique system for understanding the development of neural networks. Although C. elegans has been widely studied in the past, we present the first statistical study from a developmental perspective, with findings that raise interesting suggestions on the establishment of long-distance connections and network hubs. Here, we analyze the neuro-development for temporal and spatial features, using birth times of neurons and their three-dimensional positions. Comparisons of growth in C. elegans with random spatial network growth highlight two findings relevant to neural network development. First, most neurons which are linked by long-distance connections are born around the same time and early on, suggesting the possibility of early contact or interaction between connected neurons during development. Second, early-born neurons are more highly connected (tendency to form hubs) than later-born neurons. This indicates that the longer time frame available to them might underlie high connectivity. Both outcomes are not observed for random connection formation. The study finds that around one-third of electrically coupled long-range connections are late forming, raising the question of what mechanisms are involved in ensuring their accuracy, particularly in light of the extremely invariant connectivity observed in C. elegans. In conclusion, the sequence of neural network development highlights the possibility of early contact or interaction in securing long-distance and high-degree connectivity.     

Androgens and the development of the vagina

Today it is generally held that the vagina develops from sinovaginal bulbs and that the lower third of the definitive vagina is derived from the urogenital sinus. Here we show that the entire vagina arises by downward growth of Wolffian and Müllerian ducts, that the sinovaginal bulbs are in fact the caudal ends of the Wolffian ducts, and that vaginal development is under negative control of androgens. We designed a genetic experiment in which the androgen receptor defect in the Tfm mouse was used to examine the effects of androgens. Vaginal development was studied by 3D reconstruction in androgen-treated female embryos and in complete androgen-insensitive littermates. In androgen-treated females, descent of the genital ducts was inhibited, and a vagina formed in androgen-insensitive Tfm embryos as it does in normal females. By immmunohistochemical localization of the androgen receptor in normal mouse embryos, we demonstrated that the androgen receptor was expressed in Wolffian duct and urogenital sinus-derived structures, and was entirely absent in the Müllerian duct derivatives. We conclude that the Wolffian ducts are instrumental in conveying the negative control by androgens on vaginal development. The results are discussed under evolutionary aspects at the transition from marsupial to eutherian mammals.     

Imaging the development of the zebrafish line

The lateral line system of the zebrafish offers the qualities of simplicity, accessibility and reproducibility which are most appropriate for the analysis of neural development and pattern formation in vertebrates. Furthermore, the transparency of the fish embryos allows the application of a variety of optical and molecular methods in the living animal, which is essential for a more complete analysis of the system.     

Simulating the development of peat bogs

Summary A dynamic model is developed which simulates changes in peat bogs on different kinds of slopes. The relationships between the elements of the model which include bog plants, fen plants, water, peat and nutrients, are defined based on data from an earlier study of vegetation in the Rothenthurm area in Switzerland, and from published sources.The model is tested for its performance on three types of slope, starting development at a hypothetical state with low amounts of all variables. The development of bogs is traced until a stable state is reached at equilibrium.It is evident from the results that the establishment of a mature stable system takes longest on the flat slope. On all three slopes the peat layer reaches its maximum value before the equilibrium is reached at a slightly reduced peat level. As were observed in the fied, most slope types do not allow a peat bog to persist long under the local climatical conditions, but changes are forced in the vegetation toward a fen type with higher nutrient supply. It was however possible to simulate a stable peat bog when the slope was flat enough (type C in main text). The results of simulation reproduced with reasonable accuracy the shape of the bogs investigated in the field, the abundance of bog and fen plant species, the ground water table, the thickness of peat and the state of nutrient concentrations in the site. The model is rendered to have minimum complexity by assumptions, described in the main text, to reproduce only those properties of peat bogs that were considered primary in importance in the field. The extent to which the model can help to better understand the natural system is discussed.A version of the model described in this paper was developed by the author at the Institute of Geobotany, Swiss Federal School of Technology, Zürich, in 1975–1976. The author expresses his thanks to Prof. Dr. E. Landolt, Director of the Department.     

Toward the development of DNA vaccines

DNA vaccination has proved to be a generally applicable technology in various preclinical animal models of infectious and noninfectious disease and several DNA vaccines have now entered phase I human clinical trials. It is too early to predict the effectiveness of DNA vaccines in humans and whether improved formulations of DNA vaccines will be required but several lines of investigation have suggested ways in which DNA vaccines may be improved, such as increases in expession, facilitation of DNA targeting or uptake, and enhancement of immune responses.     

The development of the human spleen

Summary Splenic tissue of human fetuses from the 14^th to the 24^th week of gestation (menstrual age) were investigated by light- and electron microscopy to describe the development of the red and white pulp in close relationship to the differentiation of the vascular tree. Special interest is focussed on the differentiation of the T-cell- and the B-cell regions and their specific stationary cells.The preliminary stage, here called the primary vascular reticulum, lasts up to the 14^th gestational week (gw). Numerous erythrocytes, normoblasts and macrophages are seen among a network of mesenchymal cells and argyrophilic fibers. Hematopoiesis, especially erythropoiesis, can be recognized.The characteristic organ structure becomes established during the subsequent transformation stage of the fetal spleen, beginning with the 15^th gw. Splenic lobules begin to form during the 15^th to 17^th gw. They consist of a central artery, surrounded by a sheath of lightly stained stationary cells which resemble myofibroblasts. At the periphery of these lobules the red pulp forms. Initially mobile cells are distributed throughout the reticulum. Soon they begin to accumulate in the venous sinuses, which develop from lacunae among the reticular network and come into contact with the venous system. The endothelial wall of these sinuses remains discontinuous, confirming the theory of the open vascularization of the spleen. The development of the larger veins is correlated with the differentiation of the splenic trabeculae.The development of the white pulp is correlated with the stage of lymphoid colonization within the spleen, beginning around the 18^th gw. An accumulation of lymphocytes around the central arteries can be recognized during the 19^th and 20^th gw. These lymphoid cells show morphological and immunohistochemical characteristics of T-precursor cells. Within the now assembling periarterial lymphoid sheath (PALS) a few precursors of interdigitating cells (IDC) are recognizable, giving evidence for the differentiation of the T-cell region.Around the 23^rd gw the assemblage of primary follicles is discernible at the periphery of the PALS. Precursors of the follicular dendritic reticulum cell (FDRC), the specific stationary cell of the B-cell region, have been recognized. This observation leads to the conclusion that the small primary follicles represent the beginning formation of the B-cell region.The significance of the vascular system for the differentiation of the specific splenic organization is discussed.This investigation was supported by grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Sonderforschungsbereich 111)The authors appreciate the contribution of human fetal material from Dr. von Hollweg and Dr. Körner from the Hospital Heidberg, Hamburg, and the excellent technical assistance of Mrs. H. Hansen, Mrs. I. Knauer, Mrs. M.v. Kolszynski, Mrs. J. Quitzau, Mrs. H. Siebke and Mrs. H. Waluk     

The development of the MCH system

Although a great deal is published on the MCH neurons, very few works were devoted to the study of their development. However, existing literature points out two important traits: first, these neurons differentiate a MCH phenotype very early in all species studied so far, which might suggest a role for the MCH peptide during development; second, in the rat, birth date greatly influence the phenotype of MCH neurons. At least two sub-populations were described on the basis of their chemical phenotype, projection pattern and birth date. The understanding of processes involved in the differentiation of these sub-populations may help understand the medio-lateral differentiation of the tuberal hypothalamus.     

Embryonic development of the Glossiphoniid leech Theromyzon rude: Structure and development of the germinal bands

The teloblasts of the embryo of the leech Theromyzon rude contain two distinct cytoplasmic domains. One, the vitelloplasm, consists mainly of yolk platelets; it makes up more than half of the total teloblast volume. The other, the teloplasm, resides at the teloplasmic pole, surrounds the cell nucleus, and consists mainly of mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum, and other membrane-enclosed subcellular structures. The teloblasts pass on their teloplasm, but not their vitelloplasm, to the stem cells that each teloblast produces by a series of unequal divisions at its teloplasmic pole. The stem cells produced by each teloblast form a bandelet, and these bandelets associate to form the germinal bands. The nuclei of the stem cells, and of their daughter blast cells in the germinal bands that eventually generate the tissues and organs of the postembryonic leech, are smaller than the teloblast nuclei, but they contain much larger nucleoli. Different teloblasts begin and end production of their stem cells at different developmental stages. At the end of its stem cell production each teloblast still retains about half of its original teloplasm, which thereupon becomes fragmented and dispersed throughout the teloblast. During the course of stem cell production the teloblasts undergo rotational and translational movements on the surface of the embryo.     

Origin and development of the atrioventricular myocardial lineage: insight into the development of accessory pathways

Defects originating from the atrioventricular canal region are part of a wide spectrum of congenital cardiovascular malformations that frequently affect newborns. These defects include partial or complete atrioventricular septal defects, atrioventricular valve defects, and arrhythmias, such as atrioventricular re-entry tachycardia, atrioventricular nodal block, and ventricular preexcitation. Insight into the cellular origin of the atrioventricular canal myocardium and the molecular mechanisms that control its development will aid in the understanding of the etiology of the atrioventricular defects. This review discusses current knowledge concerning the origin and fate of the atrioventricular canal myocardium, the molecular mechanisms that determine its specification and differentiation, and its role in the development of certain malformations such as those that underlie ventricular preexcitation.