Chinese scientists have recreated a 3D model of a human embryo within two to three weeks after fertilization. The medical world believes that this study opens a new door to very early human embryonic development. Due to ethical concerns, in vitro culture of human embryos is limited to 14 days, and therefore the growth of the human embryo between 14 and 21 days after fertilization is generally considered a “black box.”
Researchers from the Institute of Zoology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and China Agricultural University performed high-resolution profiling on 38 gene points of a human embryo and then integrated gene expression patterns and spatial information to create a 562D model.
The study, published this week in the journal Cell, investigated the dynamic activity of signaling pathways along the embryonic body axis. The researchers said the study has broad clinical implications for understanding miscarriages and fetal disorders in early embryonic development.