The vertebrate neural crest is a migratory stem cell population that arises within the central nervous system. Here, we combine embryological techniques with array technology to describe 83 genes that provide the first gene expression profile of a newly induced neural crest cell. This profile contains numerous novel markers of neural crest precursors and reveals previously unrecognized similarities between neural crest cells and endothelial cells,another migratory cell population. We have performed a secondary screen using in situ hybridization that allows us to extract temporal information and reconstruct the progression of neural crest gene expression as these cells become different from their neighbors and migrate. Our results reveal a sequential `migration activation' process that reflects stages in the transition to a migratory neural crest cell and suggests that migratory potential is established in a pool of cells from which a subset are activated to migrate.
Interviews with Biologists @ 100 conference speakers
Explore our interviews with keynote speakers from the Biologists @ 100 conference, hosted to celebrate our publisher’s 100th anniversary, where we discuss climate change and biodiversity with Hans-Otto Pörtner and Jane Francis, health and disease with Charles Swanton and Sadaf Farooqi, and emerging technologies with Manu Prakash and Jennifer Lippincott-Schwartz.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues
Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology
In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
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