Guidance of Neural Crest Migration: Latex Beads as Probes of Surface—Substratum Interactions

The vertebrate neural crest is first recognizable at the onset of neurulation as the neural folds appose to form the neural tube. Neural crest cells emigrate from the dorsal neural tube shortly after tube closure. From this site of origin, they migrate extensively and differentiate into a wide variety of derivatives. Neural crest-derived cell types include neurons and supportive cells of the peripheral nervous system, melanocytes, several neurosecretory cell types, bone and car tilage of the face, and adrenal chromaffin cells. Because of the migratory ability of neural crest cells and the diversity of crest derivatives, this transient embryonic structure provides an important model system for studying interactions involved in cell movement and differentiation