Landmarks in developmental biology, 1883-1924 : historical essays from Roux's archives

Developmental biology took shape between 1880 and the 1920`s Basic concepts like the developmental role of chromosomes and the germ plasm (today`s genome), self differentiation, embryonic regulation and induction, gradients and organizers hail from that period; indeed, the discipline was defined as a whole by the programmatic writings of Wilhelm Roux as early as 1889. The present essays cover the period up to the Nobel prize-winning work of Hans Spemann and Hilde Mangold. They were originally published in Roux's Archives of Developmental Biology, from Vol. 200 onward to the journal's centennial issues in 1995/96. The essays aim at introducing current adepts of developmental biology to observations and experiments that have lead their predecessors towards basic concepts still influential today. Front Matter....Pages I-XI Wilhelm Roux and his programme for developmental biology....Pages 1-3 Wilhelm Roux’s treatise on “qualitative” mitoses — a “classic” by either definition....Pages 4-6 Wilhelm Roux on embryonic axes, sperm entry and the grey crescent....Pages 7-9 When seeing is believing: Wilhelm Roux’s misconceived fate map....Pages 10-12 “Mosaic work” and “assimilating effects” in embryogenesis: Wilhelm Roux’s conclusions after disabling frog blastomeres....Pages 13-15 Wilhelm Roux and the rest: Developmental theories 1885–1895....Pages 16-18 Laurent Chabry (1855–1893) and the “Age d’or” of biology....Pages 19-22 The embryological œeuvre of Laurent Chabry....Pages 23-25 How to dart ascidian blastomeres: The embryological micro-tools of Laurent Chabry (1855–1893)....Pages 26-28 Shaking a concept: Hans Driesch and the varied fates of sea urchin blastomeres....Pages 29-31 Hans Driesch the critical mechanist: “Analytische Theorie der organischen Entwicklung”....Pages 32-34 Hans Driesch’s “philosophy really ab ovo”, or why to be a vitalist....Pages 35-37 Entelechy and the ontogenetic machine — work and views of Hans Driesch from 1895 to 1910....Pages 38-40 Theodor Boveri on cytoplasmic organization in the sea urchin egg....Pages 41-43 Aneuploidy disrupts embryogenesis: Theodor Boveri’s analysis of sea urchin dispermy....Pages 44-46 Reflections on method: Theodor Boveri’s evaluation of “natural experiments” and their table-top simulation....Pages 47-49 Lessons from a queen’s lost offspring—Theodor Boveri on honeybee gynanders and other genetic mosaics....Pages 50-52 True alternatives: Boveri and Morgan arguing about the origins of honeybee gynanders....Pages 53-55 Of gradients and genes: Developmental concepts of Theodor Boveri and his students....Pages 56-58 Yves Delage (1854–1920) and the ideology behind his research on fécondation ....Pages 59-62 Eugene Bataillon (1864–1953) and traumatic parthenogenesis....Pages 63-65 Hilde Mangold (1898–1924) and Spemann’s organizer: achievement and tragedy....Pages 66-75 An American in Paris and the origins of the stereomicroscope....Pages 76-83 Is ventral in insects dorsal in vertebrates?....Pages 84-93 Archives for Developmental Mechanics W. Roux, Editor (1894–1924)....Pages 94-108