2025 Embryology Schedule
Click here to download the 2025 Embryology Schedule.
| Day | Time | Event |
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Module 1: Microscopy, Arthropods (June 2- June 7) |
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Sun, June 1
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Reception & Dinner, 7pm 2nd Floor Loeb 256 |
Tatjana Piotrowski, (Stowers); Athula Wikramanayake, (Univ. Miami), Welcome and course overview. Bring your posters |
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Mon, June 2
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Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Athula Wikramanayake, (Univ. Miami). Evolution of metazoan body plans. Nipam Patel (MBL) Key concepts in development as seen through Drosophila embryogenesis |
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Afternoon lecture and lab (1pm) Speck Auditorium |
Lecture: Lisa Cameron, (Duke U.), Michelle Itano, (UNC), Paula Montero Llopis (Harvard), Light and confocal microscopy Lab: Looking at fly embryos |
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Evening lab (7:30pm) |
Imaging Unknown Fly Stains; Lisa Cameron, (Duke U.), Michelle Itano, (UNC), Paula Montero Llopis (Harvard |
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Tues, June 3 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Nipam Patel (MBL) Establishment of the Drosophila body plan Melanie Worley (UVA) Growth and patterning during post-embryonic development of Drosophila |
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Afternoon lab (1pm) |
Drosophila larval analysis; Dissection of additional arthropods, and continued analysis of Drosophila unknown stains. Students begin their own antibody and in situ stains to familiarize themselves with handling samples and these techniques |
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Evening lab (7:30pm) microscopy lab |
Continue working on larvae and other arthropods and visualization and analysis using unknown stains Introduction of small group projects |
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Wed, June 4 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Melanie Worley (UVA) Regeneration in Drosophila Heather Bruce (UBC-Vancouver) Arthropod appendages: homology and novelty over half a billion years |
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Afternoon (1:30pm) & evening labs (7:30pm) |
Arthropod Lab continued Students complete their own initial stains; and begin small group projects Student presentations of Drosophila unknowns |
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Thur, June 5 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Guilherme Gainett (Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School), Visual system diversification in arachnids: eye loss and major transitions in eye types Prashant Sharma (University of Wisconsin, Madison) Analyses of genome architecture and comparative development break impasses in the evolutionary biology of "Arachnida" |
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Afternoon (1:30pm) & evening labs (7:30) |
Arthropod Lab continued; continue group projects Evening Lecture: Butterfly wing coloration and tour of butterfly collection |
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Fri, June 6 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Anyi Mazo-Vargas (Duke U.), Diving into butterfly wing patterning: Understanding genomic organization and signals driving diversity Lesley Weaver (Indiana University), Drosophila as a model to understand inter-organ communication |
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Afternoon (1:30pm) & evening labs (7:30pm) |
Arthropod Lab continued; continue group projects |
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Sat, June 7 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Michalis Averof (Lyon) Perfect regeneration of a complex organ; does regeneration mirror development? (Rose lecture) |
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Afternoon (1:30pm) & evening labs (7:30pm) |
Arthropod Lab continued; complete group projects |
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Sun, June 8 |
7:00pm |
Scavenger hunt and course dinner |
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Things to do this week: T-shirt design for class, softball t-shirt, parade committee |
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Module 2: Nematodes, Annelids, Acoels (June 9- June 14) |
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Mon, June 9 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Dave Sherwood, (Duke), Introduction to C. elegans, and The ins and outs of oocyte to zygote transition |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
C. elegans |
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Tues, June 10 |
Morning lectures (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Geraldine Seydoux, (Johns Hopkins/ HHMI), Assembly and function of germ granules Dan Dickinson (UT Austin), Establishing and regulating cell polarity in the early C. elegans embryo |
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Afternoon lab |
C. elegans. |
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Wed, Jun 11 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Student symposium (5min talk, 2 min questions). 104/105 Candle House |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
C. elegans. Library/MRC tour. |
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Thurs, June 12 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Duygu Özpolat (Wash U, St. Louis. Zoom lecture), Cellular mechanisms of regeneration in annelids Elaine Seaver, (Whitney Laboratory for Marine Bioscience), Embryology and regeneration: an annelid perspective |
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Afternoon & evening lab |
Annelids (C. elegans) |
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Fri, June 13 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Mansi Srivastava, (Harvard), The evolution of regeneration and stem cells: the acoelomorph perspective; and, Plasticity across development and evolution |
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Afternoon & evening labs, |
Acoels (C. elegans, annelids) |
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Sat, June 14 |
10am |
Tour marine invertebrate culture center |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
C. elegans, acoels, annelids, |
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Class presentations (9pm) |
Show ‘n Tell 1; lab clean up |
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Sun, June 15 |
Free time |
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Module 3: Basal deuterostomes and spiralians (June 16- June 21) |
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Mon, June 16 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Athula Wikramanayake, (Univ. Miami), Introduction to echinoderms and early patterning Zak Swartz, (MBL), A (sea) star is born: oogenesis and early development in a changing ocean |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Marine Resource Center tour and tour of Loeb. (1-3PM) schedule! Jon Henry, (MBL), Zak Swartz (MBL), Margherita Perillo (MBL), Athula Wikramanayake (UMiami), Tool making & microinjection (use echinoderms to practice microinjections) (3-6PM) |
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Tues, June 17 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Laurinda Jaffe (University of Connecticut)(Lillie lecture) Fertilization and the activation of development Margherita Perillo, (MBL), Sea stars and sea cucumbers as models for organogenesis. |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Echinoderms. Sea stars |
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Wed, June 18 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Bob Zeller, (San Diego State Univ.), Introduction to ascidian development - sea squirts made easy. Ed Munro, (Univ. Chicago), Coupling cell fate and morphogenesis in Ascidians |
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Afternoon & evening labs Evening discussion |
Echinoderms, ascidians. Athula Wikramanayake, (Univ. Miami) and Tatjana Piotrowski, (Stowers Institute), Ethics Discussion- authorship and navigating mentor/mentee relationships |
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Thur, June 19 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Ed Munro, (Univ. Chicago), Dynamics of neural tube closure in ascidians Alberto Stofi (Georgia Tech), A conserved RNA switch for acetylcholine receptor clustering at neuromuscular junctions in chordates
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Ascidians (echinoderms) |
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evening lecture (fish bowl) |
Jon Henry (MBL). Twists and turns of spiralian developmental biology |
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Fri, June 20 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Dede Lyons (Scripps Institute of Oceanography)(Kessel Lecture), Developmental origins of molluscan novelties |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Spiralians (echinoderms, tunicates) |
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Sat, June 21 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Elia Benito- Gutierrez (Univ. of Cambridge, UK). Cephalochordates, Amphioxus. |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
spiralians, tunicates, echinoderms |
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Sun, June 22 |
Morning and Afternoon |
Free time |
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Evening lecture (8pm) |
Elke Ober (FAU Erlangen, Germany). Introduction to ZF development |
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Module 4: Fish and Frogs (June 23- June 28) (Please note that there will be morning and evening labs, and afternoon lectures this week) |
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Mon, June 23 |
Morning lab (9am) |
Zebrafish |
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Afternoon lecture (1-3pm) Speck Auditorium |
Tatjana Piotrowski, (Stowers Institute), Zebrafish intro; sensory lateral line development/regeneration |
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Evening lab (7:30-8:30pm) |
Zebrafish/ frog lab intro |
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Tues, June 24 |
Morning lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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Afternoon lecture (1-3pm) Speck Auditorium |
John Wallingford (Univ. of Texas, Austin), What 25 years of vertebrate Planar Cell Polarity hasn’t taught us |
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Evening lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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Wed, June 25 |
Morning lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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Afternoon Lecture (1-3pm) Speck Auditorium |
Elke Ober, (FAU Erlangen, Germany), Building an organ - liver development and regeneration |
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Evening lab |
Frogs, Zebrafish |
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Thur, June 26 |
Morning lab |
Frogs, Zebrafish |
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Afternoon lecture (1-3pm) Speck Auditorium |
Andrea Wills, (Univ. Washington), Decoding the transcriptional and metabolic requirements for vertebrate regeneration Shinuo Weng (Johns Hopkins University), Decoding multiscale biomechanics in convergent extension |
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Evening lab |
Frogs, Zebrafish |
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Fri, June 27 |
Morning lab 10:30am |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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Afternoon lecture (1-3pm) Speck Auditorium |
Marina Venero-Galanternik (University of Utah), Anatomical and molecular characterization of the zebrafish meninges Andrew Gillis, (MBL) Skate development and evolution of the vertebrate skeleton |
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Evening lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs, Skates |
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Sat, June 28 |
Morning lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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11am |
Fish room tour with Elke Ober |
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Afternoon lecture 1:30pm Speck Auditorium |
Dan Rokhsar (UC Berkeley)(Rafferty lecture), The past has left its traces on the world: deeply conserved synteny and the evolution of animals |
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Evening lab |
Zebrafish, Frogs |
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Class presentations 8pm |
Show ‘n Tell 2; lab clean up |
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Sun, June 29 |
Whale watching trip to Hyannis |
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Module 5: Chicks and Mouse (June 30- July 5) |
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Mon, June 30 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Peter Lwigale (Rice University), Introduction to avian development Tatjana Sauka-Spengler, (Stowers Institute), Gene Regulatory Networks. |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Chick |
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Tues, July 1 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Richard Behringer (MD Anderson). Introduction to mouse development/sex development |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Mouse (chick) |
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Wed, July 2 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Ondine Cleaver (UTSW), Introduction to mouse development and development of the vascular system |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Chick and mouse |
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Thur, July 3 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium Afternoon & evening labs |
Stephan Grill (Max-Planck-Institute Dresden, Germany; Katsuma and Jean Dan lecture hosted by Physiology). Physics of Structure Formation in Living Systems. Chick and mouse |
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Fri, July 4 |
July 4th Parade |
Free time, parade. Course BBQ next to white tent at 6pm and watch fireworks on beach. |
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Sat, July 5 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Peter Lwigale (Rice University), Partnering of Periocular Neural Crest Cells during Ocular Development Marcos Simoes-Costa (Harvard University), The avian embryo as a model for developmental genomics |
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Afternoon/evening labs |
Chick and mouse, softball game, After game BBQ |
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Sun, July 6 |
Free time |
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Module 6: Cephalopods, Cnidarians, Ctenophores (July 7- July 12) |
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Mon, July 7 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Carrie Albertin (MBL) Evolution and development of cephalopod brains and body plans |
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Afternoon |
Cephalopods |
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evening lab |
Cephalopods, squid injections. |
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Tues, July 8 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Celina Juliano (UC Davis), Mechanisms of development and regeneration in Hydra.
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Cnidarians, Nematostella |
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Wed, July 9 |
Morning lectures (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Matt Gibson, (Stowers Institute), Anthozoan overview: The biology of sea anemones and reef building corals, and. Your inner anemone: segments, somites, and the evolution of animal metamerism |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Cnidarians, Nematostella |
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Thur, July 10 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Bill Browne (Univ. Miami), Using Mnemiopsis as a model to investigate ctenophore innate immunity Athula Wikramanayake (Univ. Miami), The evolution of signaling pathways: insights from Wnt/beta-catenin signaling in non-bilaterians |
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Afternoon labs (1:30PM) Evening labs |
Ctenophores (cnidarians, cephalopods) Ctenophores (cnidarians, cephalopods) |
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Fri, July 11 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Olivier Pourquie (Harvard) (Saunders lecture). Laying down the body plan: lessons from the embryo, and Deconstructing and reconstructing the human musculo-skeletal system in vitro with pluripotent stem cells. |
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Afternoon & evening labs |
Cnidarians (ctenophores, cephalopods) |
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Sat, July 12 |
Morning lecture (9-11am) Speck Auditorium |
Ehab Abouheif (McGill), What ants––nature’s ultimate superorganisms––teach us about development and evolution |
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Afternoon labs |
cnidarians, ctenophores, cephalopods |
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Class presentations, (8pm) |
Show ‘n Tell 3 |
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Sun, July 13 |
Morning discussion (11am) |
Athula Wikramanayake, (Univ. Miami) and Tatjana Piotrowski (Stowers Institute) |
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Afternoon lab |
Lab clean-up |
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Evening (7:30pm) |
Course banquet and award ceremony |
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