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| Xenopus gastrulation (internal view) |
This movie is of an internal view (mid-sagital section) of a gastrulating Xenopus laevis embryo. The dorsal lip of the blastopore can be seen forming at ~4 O'clock. Note the diminishing blastocoel and expanding archenteron as cells flow into the interior of the embryo. Note the anterior extension of the involuting mesodermal cells. |
| Xenopus gastrulation (external view) |
This movie views a gastrulating Xenopus laevis embryo, looking at the blastopore from a dorsal and posterior view. Note the ring-shaped blastopore through which cell layers involute. The dorsal lip is seen as a pigmentented involution site at the start of the movie. The future lateral and ventral lips of the blastopore are visible as a ring of pigment at the start of the movie. The blastopore then quickly expands to its full circumference. As the blastopore constricts, note the rotation of the embryo so that the dorsal midline comes to lie on top. This movie was downloaded from Hardin's Amphibian Development Tutorial. It was filmed in the Keller lab. |
| Xenopus gastrulation and neurulation (external view) |
This movie is a continuation of the movie above, showing the process of neurulation. as the neural plate closes, note the elongation of the spinal cord and brain. Downloaded from Hardin's Amphibian Development Tutorial. |
| Xenopus gastrulation (external view) based on drawings of Nieuwkoop and colleagues |
This movie was morphed by Steven Black from the original drawings of Xenopus laevis gastrulation made in the Nieuwkoop laboratory. The movie ends as the neural plate and neural folds become visible. |