Question

Which germ layer is the brain and spinal cord derived from?

Answer 1

Germ layers:

1. A germ layer is an array of cells found in an embryo.
2. They are any of the three primary cell layers produced in the initial stages of embryonic development.
3. It comprises the inner layer or endoderm, the outer layer of the ectoderm, and the middle layer of the mesoderm.
4. During the development of an embryo, gastrulation is the process in which the pluripotent stem cells differentiate into the three primordial germ layers, that is, the mesoderm, ectoderm, and endoderm.
5. The ectodermal germ layer gives rise to the peripheral and the central nervous system; that is, the brain and the spinal cord are ectodermal in origin.
6. Apart from this, ectoderm also gives rise to the sensory epithelium of the ear, eye, nose, mammary gland, enamel of teeth, pituitary gland, etc.