Testing developmental causes
Trained in medicine and anatomy, Roux investigated cell division and the allocation of material during organ formation. His developmental-mechanics programme sought causal explanations through altered conditions, extending beyond descriptions of embryonic stages.
References: [1]
The heated-needle experiments
In experiments published in 1888, Roux damaged an early frog-embryo blastomere with a heated needle and followed the remaining cell. Observing half-embryonic structures, he interpreted early cells as having specified fates, like parts of a mosaic.
References: [1]
Conditions and interpretation
Driesch later obtained smaller complete larvae by separating sea-urchin blastomeres. The organisms and treatments differed, and the findings generated debate about developmental regulation. In 1894 Roux founded a journal of developmental mechanics, supporting continuing experimental investigations.