Neural crest cell migration in the zebrafish can be mimicked by inert objects: Mechanism and implication of latex bead movement in embryos
✍ Scribed by Jesuthasan, Suresh
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1997
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 194 KB
- Volume
- 277
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0022-104X
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Migratory cells in the embryo, such as neural crest cells, are generally thought to move via their own exertions and to be guided by passive cues in their environment. However, inert latex beads have been found to mimic neural crest migration in the chick embryo, indicating the existence of an external agent that may also propel cells and guide their migration. The identity of this agent has been a mystery.
Here, by comparing the movement of neural crest cells and beads over a 24-hour period, it is shown that beads also mimic neural crest migration in the anterior head of zebrafish embryos, but that they scatter in the trunk. By observing their behavior in this transparent embryo, beads are seen to be propelled by cells: they translocate when in contact with motile cells, and generally move over the surface of one cell only. When propelled by neural crest cells, beads mimic crest migration; when propelled by somite cells, beads move in random directions. That these cells can propel inert objects over their surface is confirmed by observing their interaction in vitro. The force that neural crest cells exert on beads may also be exerted on other crest cells. These cells appear to adhere to one another via tips of filopodia and, consistent with tension being applied, protrusions thicken after contact.
These findings provide an explanation for the puzzling observation that inert objects can move in embryos, and raise the possibility that cells may mechanically influence one another as they migrate.