Talk:2012 Group Project 4

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Revision as of 15:48, 24 September 2012 by Z3373894 (talk | contribs)

From the Course Coordinator

2012 Projects: Vision | Somatosensory | Taste | Olfaction | Abnormal Vision | Hearing


--Mark Hill 09:58, 18 September 2012 (EST) This is a recent review on vision. http://jcb.rupress.org/content/190/6/953.full JCB content allows reuse.

http://www.jove.com/video/3730/isolation-and-culture-of-human-fungiform-taste-papillae-cells

--Mark Hill 08:17, 16 August 2012 (EST) This small section at the top of your discussion page allows me to easily distribute information to all students looking at the group discussion page.

Please do not delete, edit or move the template {{Template:2012GroupDiscussion}} from the top of this page.

1. Search:

2. History

  • Embryology History Explore the rich history of sensory research. In particular look through the available images that may complement the text. Any of this material can be used, you should cite the original paper or textbook. Gray | 1921 Bailey and Miller



--Mark Hill 09:59, 18 September 2012 (EST) This is a recent review on smell. http://jcb.rupress.org/content/191/3/443.full JCB content allows reuse.

Not for reuse but good reading - The Neurobiology of Olfaction

Group evaluation

The introduction was very interesting to read - 1000 genes related to olfactory system is amazing. The introduction isn't too long which is great. However, it would be good to include in text citations. Where did you get your information from?

The history section will look better if it was put into a table.

The 'Timeline of Development process' is excellent because it clearly presents so much information with respect to the time the differentiations took place. I can't wait to see the images though because some of the concepts were hard to understand without visual aids. For example, 'specialized areas in rostrolateral regions of head of olfactory placodes' - where is that on the embryo?

The normal function section was short. This is nice to see because this project is about development, not about the function. It would be good to include a diagram of the signaling pathway in this section, just to make it interesting.

The structure section needs a bit more information. Maybe put the olfactory bulb image in this section as it relates more to structure. You can also put some images of the cribiform plate in here too.

Abnormality section on Kallmann's syndrome was very well written. It had lots of detail, presented clearly in point form. Can you describe some of the other diseases in just as much detail as well? It just seems like Kallmann's syndrome is the main disease and there's not a lot of focus in other abnormalities.

In current research, 'the 'role of Odorant receptors' need to have some text and content in that section, not just the reference.

--Z3332863 16:58, 23 September 2012 (EST)


Your introduction is good and gives a brief overview of what the olfactory system entails. There were a few spelling mistakes, which can easily be corrected. Make sure you do tell the reader what you will be discussing on your page – development of the olfactory system and the particular subheadings you will focus on. The image could do with a few more labels for orientation, but besides that it complements the text and contains the correct citation, student template, etc.

The history section is good and quite extensively researched. Most groups will provide the history in a table, with dates in chronological order (to clearly show history and developing knowledge over time). This might be something to think about. I would suggest a ‘date – description – significant person’ type of format for a table. Good image, but it is displayed next to Pearson instead of Kollman. It is also difficult to see what it is and read the labels without opening the larger version, so you might want to increase its size slightly. Because this is a student image I would like to see the original – if possible provide a link to the Atlas of the Development of Man 2. You should also explain what Kallmann’s Syndrome actually is, because this seems a little vague.

Your timeline of developmental process looks amazing and is enjoyable to read. Some of your words are printed in bold and link to the glossary. In one of your next sections the words link directly to the glossary, so you should probably do he same thing here. I really hope you can add pictures to this table to complement your text! Not quite sure what the line at the bottom (SINUSES:A:…) is doing there… either delete or expand upon this.

Structure: you only have a link here. Please provide text and image to explain the structure briefly. The YouTube link should be there to help the reader understand this section, instead of being the only thing this section is made up of. The video is not your own work, so please add your own work to this!

The normal function section was alright. It has some useful information in there, however, only a single reference listed at the end. It seemed like more references should be included within the paragraph. I would also include the fact that depolarization is an all-or-nothing response. The threshold needs to be reached for depolarization to occur, but there is no build-up over time to reach this threshold. It has to happen at that one instance. The links should be listed under the heading ‘external links’ or, if used as references, incorporated as proper references within the text. The olfactory bulb image is a little small and the description is quite brief. Though, good citation of the source and a student template is present. I think the olfactory bulb image and the epithelium image should be included in the ‘structure’ section.

The abnormality section includes Kallmann’s syndrome and a quick definition has finally been provided! Please include this in the history section too. This section was a joy to read! Very interesting! A lot of effort has been put into the research and references have been done very well. I assume OB stands for olfactory bulb – please indicate this in the text. The dotpoints listed in the ‘clinical features’ section could do with a brief explanations instead of me having to scroll up and down between the text and the glossary. The image is excellent and shows a good simplified concept of what happens. Good descriptions, source citations, etc are added too. It was good to see diagnosis and treatment included.

Current research starts with a link, which seems quite random – include this in the external links section. You found some interesting and current research. References are only listed at the end of each paragraph, but should probably be included within as well. The image relates to one of the projects and descriptions are appropriate. Nothing has been added to the ‘role of odorant receptors’ though (apart from a reference). Please add a brief paragraph to this section.

Terms should be added to the glossary. The reference list also needs checking, because some are the same (eg. 11 & 12) and others do not have a reference (eg. 7 & 17).

Hope this helps!


The introduction is quite small but very precise, indicating the function and the components of the olfactory system but maybe include one or two sentences in the introduction telling readers that it is actually about the development of the olfactory system, not just the function and components of it. After all, introduction is meant to show others what your project is about. The hand-drawn image there is very nice but maybe more information need to be provided other than just labelling parts of it. Along with the image, there are the important informations such as the copyright notice which is good to see.

The history of discoveries section is very well-researched but it will be easier to read if it was in a table. The timeline, i thought was very good because there are a lot of useful information about the development of olfaction which relates to the research topic. The developmental process is explained in quite simple terms but i notice some of the scientific terms in the timeline are not explained in the glossary, this makes it a little bit hard to understand the whole process. It is very interesting that a youtube link has been included in the structure section, this is really a good peer teaching but make sure you referenced the video correctly to avoid plagiarism. The section on Kallman's syndrome is quite interesting but the structure of that section is a bit messy, maybe try clarifying and tidy it up a lit. But i can see that a lot of research effort has been put into it which is good and the variety of resources used in the section is very broad. More images should be put here because right now, there is just a huge block of text in the section. Images will balance out the heavy text load and attract readers more.

The current research section contains a lot of useful information and it relates to the research topic well. Again, images should be put here because right now, there are just small blocks of text in the section without any images, this maybe a little bit boring for readers.

Overall, the project looks well-researched and relates pretty well to the research topic. The balance of the images and text still needs to be fixed but in terms of the text and information on the page, i think it is pretty sufficient and in-depth especially the timeline of development and current research section. There are some terms in the glossary which is good but maybe more terms should be added. The structure of the page is good, very easy to follow. There are a few external links which is always good to put there for anyone that are interested by the topic and want some further information about it. Referencing is good, there is only one minor citing error (no.7), but it should be easy to fix. Hope this helps :)


The introduction provides a good overview to the topic and the associated images have all the appropriate referencing information.

The history section is interesting and well researched with good use of subheadings.

The timeline of development is very useful and informative however is quite text-heavy, some diagrams may be able to help here.

The anatomy and normal function sections don't add very much to the page, especially in terms of embryological development. Adding more to these sections may help.

The abnormalities section is good, with a lot of information on Kallmann's syndrome, however other abnormalities (if there are any?) could be included to expand this section.

The current research section contains a lot of information in a small amount of space. It is quite jargon-heavy although this might not be able to be avoided. The subheadings are good as they act to split this section into discrete units.

The glossary and external links are very good, and the references are extensive which is good.


External Links

Hey team... make sure you check the links i added to the external link section. They are great resources to use in your sections.

Z3333427 10:19, 21 August 2012 (EST)

Group Topic Selection

So we have a choice between:

stem cells

Neuronal development

Sensory development

I personally don't have a particular preference but I think neural or sensory would be something different to touch on since there's still so much progressing research in the field.


Hey all :-). Thanks for getting the ball rolling. I like the latter two options, in particular neuronal development - from there we can pick a certain aspect and explore not only normal development but perhaps research complications and genes/factors implicated when things go wrong. p.s. It would be great if we could figure out a regular time to meet during the week outside the lab so we can properly discuss and share our research

Just a heads up- Mark preferred that we don't put our names up anywhere on the wikipage for privacy purposes!

sensory system hello everyone, it seems like the options we had chosen for sensory were picked before we had a chance and therefore I have asked Dr Hill for us to do the "hearing" system. I don't mind changing if the group chooses to do so, however, I thought it would be a good idea to have a topic locked in. Please let me know if you want to do a different topic

--Z3333427 11:32, 14 August 2012 (EST)

Designation of parts

There must be an addition of current research and technologies in each area

Make sure this is not presented as an essay (balance text and writing with images, tables etc)

Possibly a history of the development of understanding

Z3331264 11:54, 15 August 2012 (EST) Timeline and processes of development

--Z3374215 11:59, 15 August 2012 (EST)I would like to do a history section and the introduction

Please identify which part you want to be responsible for, keep in mind that you can work at any topic you would like.

Introduction: Andrew

History: Libby

Abnormalities: Stephanie

Future research: Libby (future research on normal function) Stephanie (future research on abnormalities/treatments)

Timeline: Z3331264 20:18, 22 August 2012 (EST)

Progress of individual tasks and project queries

Z3331264 20:18, 22 August 2012 (EST): I will be creating a table to indicate the timeline of development of olfaction during embryonic development. I will make changes to the initial table as I go along so as to avoid not contributing any online material until the end.

--Z3333427 00:58, 25 August 2012 (EST)The table is a really good idea, we should probably have at least another one as information becomes much more organised. Just to let you know that I changed it to Carnegie stages as most sources organise their information based on those stages, and keep in mind that the placodes dont form until week 11 or 12, so there is no need to have stages 1-10.

--Z3374215 17:52, 27 August 2012 (EST) I've got some information on historical developments but information is really difficult to find. I've made some progress but not sure how much more there is that I can do. In light of that I might also take a look at the subheading "Structure". It's referring to the physical structure of the developing olfactory system?

--Z3331264 19:33, 27 August 2012 (EST) Carnegie stages are a good idea! I also think its important to include a brief description of the development of the anatomy of the nose (turbinates etc) as well as a bit about the brain development in the locations of the olfactory nerve. Don't freak out when you read my additions, I do my research gradually, which means I will first add what I found in the textbook and then later on fill in the gaps plus add a research dimension with current lit.

--Z3333038 10:09, 29 August 2012 (EST) Hi all, you heard it from Mark today but just restating, even when doing draft work you must reference properly as you go along or you will be penalised.

--Z3331264 11:22, 29 August 2012 (EST) Decided to just stick to weeks rather than carnegie stages because sometimes between carnegies stages, little events occur which will make the table larger and more confusing!


--Z3333038 18:01, 29 August 2012 (EST) Hey Libby, I found a review article which contains a brief history on olfaction abnormalities in development in the introduction: http://www.springerlink.com.wwwproxy0.library.unsw.edu.au/content/288u546105v08575/fulltext.pdf

--Z3333038 19:26, 29 August 2012 (EST) Hi all, just letting you know im working through pathophysiology for Kallmann's syndrome on a word document at the moment and will post some as I go online to document progress. Currently working on a diagram demonstrating the abnormalities in the olfactory bulb neuronal connections.

--Z3333038 21:18, 30 August 2012 (EST) Completed my diagram and have uploaded it with referencing. I based my diagram on an image from a review article which I have referenced - have emailed Dr. Hill to check that all is alright in terms of copyright.

--Z3331264 22:25, 4 September 2012 (EST) : Hey everyone, this is the html code to add to your parts whenever you wish to place a link of a word to the glossary:

put the word you want linked to glossary here

--Z3374215 17:18, 5 September 2012 (EST) Hi Stephanie, I found an interesting article about abnormal development of the olfaction bulb of mice when exposed to alcohol. Don't know if you'd seen it. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21736737

I also read that article! Pretty interesting stuff

Z3333427 17:48, 7 September 2012 (EST) That is a good idea, please email Dr. Hill if you are unsure about anything as huge penalties apply for ignoring copyright. By the way our group project is looking good, more diagrams and tables similar to the one we have now would be great.

--Z3333038 08:21, 11 September 2012 (EST) Thanks for the article :-). I will add it to a section on congenital anosmia. I emailed him and he said it was absolutely fine, as long as I referenced my source information.

--Z3374215 12:00, 12 September 2012 (EST) Just a note to myself more than anything. I need to reference Julius Kollmann's textbook in the history section and add a diagram.

--Z3333038 20:12, 14 September 2012 (EST) Loving the page team! The drawings are great! Nearly finished my bit, just have to add a brief paragraph for the other congenital abnormalities and one more research article.

--Z3333038 22:35, 14 September 2012 (EST)Hey Libby I found this website for timeline/history: http://www.medlink.com/medlinkcontent.asp...it talks about discoveries of congenital olfactory defects. --Z3333038 09:15, 15 September 2012 (EST)Completed abnormalities and submitted 3 current research articles. Happy to take on extra parts.

--Z3374215 12:06, 15 September 2012 (EST) Thanks Stephanie that site looks great! I'll check it out soon.

--Z3333038 11:06, 19 September 2012 (EST) Important! Hey guys, we really need to work on the development of each structure and the genes involved. Who can help me out?

--Z3333038 11:47, 19 September 2012 (EST)Note to self: Make section on external links.

--Z3331264 17:49, 20 September 2012 (EST) The table that I included walks through the timeline of development. I have slowly been adding more and more research including genes involved in patterning. But at the same time, I don't want to dive into too much information in order to maintain the balance between text and images. I have figured out a way to do this without making it all seem too simple, so just bear with me for the next week and you'll see it tie in well. Cheers