Studies of selected model organisms have led to a greatly improved understanding not only of the molecular events which take place during development under the control of specific sets of genes, but also of epigenetic and environmental influences on these processes. This book gives an overview of all three of these levels and their relative importance, and as such will give the reader a clear picture of one of the most exciting areas of current biological research.

Section 1 Microbial Systems, Both Prokaryote and Eukaryote

1 Virus Assembly and Morphogenesis
2 Spatial and Temporal Control of Gene Expression in Prokaryotes
3 Multicellular Development in the Myxobacteria Myxococcus xanthus and Stigmatella aurantiaca
4 Cell Type Determination in Yeast
5 Genetic and Environmental Influence on Development of the Filamentous Fungus Neurospora crassa
6 Cell-Cell Communication in Dictyostelium
7 The Cell Division Cycle in Aspergillus nidulans
Section 2 Plants
8 Flowering Plant Embryogenesis
9 Root Development in Arabidopsis
10 Leaf Development
11 Floral Development: Genetic Views and Molecular News
12 Genetic Control of Endosperm Development
13 Environmental Light Signals and the Development of Arabidopsis
14 Plant-Microorganism Symbiosis
Section 3 Animals
15 Caenorhabditis elegans: Embryonic Axis Formation; Signalling in Early Development
16 Cell Fate Determination in Caenorhabditis elegans
17 Morphogenesis and Organogenesis in Caenorhabditis elegans
18 The Regulation of Cell and Growth Cone Migrations During the Development of Caenorhabditis elegans
19 Formation of Embryonic Axes and Blastoderm Pattern in Drosophila
20 Early Neurogenesis in Drosophila
21 Drosophila: Imaginal Disk Development: Patterning the Adult Fly
22 Insertional Mutagenesis in Zebrafish
23 Spatial and Temporal Control of Maternal Message Utilization
24 DNA Methylation
25 X-Chromosome Inactivation
26 Genomic Imprinting: its Role in Development and Disease
27 Myogenesis
28 Neurotrophins in Development of the Nervous System
29 Olfactory Receptor Gene Regulation
30 Genetically Modified Mice as Tools for Cancer Research
31 Circadian Timing in Animals
32 Polarity in Biological Systems.