Regional patterns of deposition of laminin (LN), fibronectin (FN), type IV collagen (IV), and heparan sulfate proteoglycan (HSPG) were examined during the formation of the caudal neural tube in embryos homozygous for the delayed Splotch gene and in their normal littermates. Delayed Splotch embryos had neural tube closure defects which extended from the posterior neuropore into the region formed...

During neurulation in rat embryos, the forebrain grows more rapidly than can be accounted for by intrinsic cell division alone, while the adjacent midbrain/rostral hindbrain maintains a constant cell number despite a high mitotic index (the cell cycle time is 6 h throughout the neural epithelium). We have proposed that neuroepithelial cells flow in a rostral direction within the midbrain/rostra...

The reorganization of epithelial sheets into tubes is a fundamental process in the formation of many organs, such as the lungs, kidneys, gut, and neural tube. This process involves the patterning of distinct cell types and the coordination of those cells during the shape changes and rearrangements that produce the tube. A better understanding of the cellular and genetic mechanisms that regulate...

Synopsis Magnetic resonance microscopy offers a unique window on deep tissue movements in optically opaque embryos. The aim of this project is to develop MR microscopy for single and multiple embryo, high throughput studies with sufficient spatiotemporal resolution to explore key developmental processes during neurulation and somitogenesis in established amphibian embryonic models. Introduction...