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Image description by: Tanya Whitfield
Anatomical structures shown: ear, otoliths, anterior macula and posterior crista, semicircular canal projections, statoacoustic ganglion
Stage: A: prim-5 (24h); B: prim-25 (36h); C: long pec (48h); D: hatching – protruding mouth (72h)
Genetic (background) strain: Tuebingen
Genotype: Tu wild-type
Animal state: live
Labeling: none; DIC optics.
Description: Lateral views of the developing ear in wild-type embryos. Otoliths are clearly visible at either end of the otic vesicle by the prim-5 stage (A, arrowheads). In the anteroventral region of the vesicle, the distinction between ear epithelium and periotic mesenchyme is less pronounced; neuroblasts are delaminating from this region and accumulating beneath the vesicle to form the statoacoustic ganglion (sag). The vesicle enlarges over the next three days (B, C, D). Otoliths (arrowheads) increase in size. The developing anterior macula (am) can be seen as a thickened region of epithelium beneath the anterior otolith. The posterior macula lies on the medial wall of the vesicle, behind the posterior otolith. Projections of epithelium forming the semicircular canal system (arrows) start to protrude into the centre of the vesicle at the long pec stage, and fuse by the protruding mouth stage (arrow in D). By this stage, the cristae are just visible as thickened areas of epithelium (pc, posterior crista). Scale bars, 50µm.
| Preparation | Image Form | View | Direction |
| whole-mount | still | parasagittal | anterior to left |