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During chick embryo development, the liquid crystals appear in more than 20 organs at certain developmental stages, and vanish in early post-natal stage. In this study, we found a complex in embryo, the YS-J/I tunnel system, in charge of transporting the LCs and CCVCs preserved from yolk sac into the embryo. This transportation initiates from yolk sac connecting to central transportation region/reservoir via a main tunnel, spreads radically to various parts of digestive system via sub-tunnels. Our data indicate that the liquid crystals could be the best form of nutrition which is necessary in embryo development and early post-natal development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Organogenesis has been given increasing attention in the fields of biomedical and bioengineering. However, the mechanism for a succession process as complex as embryogenesis remains largely unknown. Based on our previous discoveries, liquid crystal may play a crucial role in organogenesis. Here, our results demonstrated that LC droplets were distributed on the pleural area, the bronchus and bronchiole in the developing lung. The lung liquid crystal droplets are capable of phase transitions between liquid crystal, crystal, and isotropic phases which are dependent on the rate of temperature change as previously reported in liver, kidney and other major tissues of the embryo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Massive liquid crystal droplets (LCDs) have been reported in early embryogenesis and implicated in pathological progression of human diseases. The presence of LCDs has even been established as an effective diagnostic hallmark of Fabry-Anderson's disease. In this study, we report the presence of LCDs, identified by established thermal stage phase transition methods, in sputum collected during the recovery phase of respiratory infection by gram-positive bacteria. This finding provides additional insight on the breadth of liquid crystal presence in human pathology. Further study on the formation of these LCDs may lead to new perspectives on post-infection removal of infectious agents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]