Bi1130 Methods in developmental biology

Faculty of Science
Spring 2025
Extent and Intensity
2/0/0. 2 credit(s) (plus 1 for the colloquium). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
doc. RNDr. Marcela Buchtová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jakub Harnoš, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Marek Hampl, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Pavel Dobeš, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jana Hurychová (lecturer)
RNDr. Petra Kolísková, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Nikodém Zezula (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. RNDr. Marcela Buchtová, Ph.D.
Department of Experimental Biology – Biology Section – Faculty of Science
Contact Person: doc. RNDr. Marcela Buchtová, Ph.D.
Supplier department: Department of Experimental Biology – Biology Section – Faculty of Science
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
This course, which will run in parallel with the practical lectures (PřF: Bi1130c), introduces modern experimental methods from Genetics and Molecular Biology that are exploited for the study of embryonal development.
Furthermore, this course will show how a set of basic animal models (Caenorhabditis, Drosophila, Danio, Xenopus, Chamaeleo, Gallus, Mus) can be examined by individual techniques.
Finally, this course serves as a key resource for Master students for their State Exams in the field of Developmental Biology.
Learning outcomes
Students will be able to:
- understand basics of key model organisms used in Experimental Embryology
- determine developmental stages on models
- describe significant methods used in this field
Syllabus
  • 1. BASICS OF EXPERIMENTAL WORK - types of studies, experimental design, hypothesis
  • 2. MODEL ORGANISMS IN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY - Invertebrates - What is a model organism and how to select it, examples of model organisms, Caenorhabditis elegans, Galleria mellonella, Drosophila melanogaster.
  • 3. MODEL ORGANISMS IN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY - Vertebrates - Danio rerio, Ambystoma mexicanum, Xenopus laevis, Reptilia, Gallus gallus, Mus musculus, Sus scrofa
  • 4. 3D cultures - definition, basic types and characterization, preparation and cultivation of organoids, examples of using these approaches in Developmental Biology, pros and cons
  • 5. CHIMERS - definition, examples of using these approaches in Developmental Biology, pros and cons, IVF
  • 6. WORK WITH DNA A RNA, METHODS FOR ANALYSIS OF GENE EXPRESSION USED IN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY Northern blotting, In situ hybridization, PCR, microarray, RNA sequencing, single-cell sequencing
  • 7. METHODS FOR PROTEIN STUDY USED IN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 1 - proteins, analyses of proteins (localization, conformation, and activity), creating a working hypothesis on a provided example
  • 8. METHODS FOR PROTEIN STUDY USED IN DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 2 - posttranslational modifications (PTM), protein-protein interactions (PPI), analyses of PTM and PPI
  • 9. ANALYSIS OF LIPIDS AND CARBOHYDRATES - separation and identification of lipids and carbohydrates, chromatography (GC, HPLC), mass spectrometry, nuclear magnetic resonance, visualization techniques
  • 10. STUDY OF GENES: LOSS-OF-FUNCTION APPROACHES - CRISPR-based gene editing, TALEN, ZFNs RNA interference, morpholinos, pharmacological inhibition, blocking antibodies, PROTAC
  • 11. STUDY OF GENES: GAIN-OF-FUNCTION APPROACHES - CRISPR-based gene editing, injection of morphogens or nucleic acids, TOL2 transgenesis, TET ON/OFF system, Rescue type experiments
  • 12. ANALYSES OF CELL MIGRATION AND CELL FATE - BrdU, DiI, GFP, LacZ, transgenic models (CRE-loxP, CRE ERT2, split-CRE, Brainbow/Confetti), live-cell imaging
Literature
  • GILBERT, Scott F. Developmental biology. 9th ed. Sunderland, Mass.: Sinauer Associates, 2010, xxi, 711. ISBN 9780878935642. info
Teaching methods
Teaching is based on theoretical knowledge of the studied phenomena.
Assessment methods
Evaluation will be based on student performance during a combined exam.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught: every week.
Information on course enrolment limitations: Na předmět se vztahuje povinnost registrace, bez registrace může být znemožněn zápis předmětu!
Listed among pre-requisites of other courses
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2020, Spring 2021, Spring 2022, Spring 2023, Spring 2024.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2025, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/sci/spring2025/Bi1130