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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Distinct cardiac malformations caused by absence of connexin 43 in the neural crest and in the non-crest neural tube.

Connexin 43 (Cx43) is expressed in the embryonic heart, cardiac neural crest (CNC) and neural tube, and germline knockout (KO) of Cx43 results in aberrant cardiac outflow tract (OFT) formation and abnormal coronary deployment. Prior studies suggest a vital role for CNC expression of Cx43 in heart development. Surprisingly, we found that conditional knockout (CKO) of Cx43 in the dorsal neural tube and CNC mediated by Wnt1-Cre failed to recapitulate the Cx43-null OFT phenotype, although coronary vasculature was abnormal in this mutant line. A broader CKO mediated by P3pro (Pax3)-Cre, involving both ventral and dorsal aspects of the thoracic neural tube and CNC, resulted in infundibular bulging and coronary anomalies similar to those seen in germline Cx43-null hearts. P3pro-Cre-mediated loss of Cx43 in the neural tube was characterized by a late phase of cellular delamination from the dorsal and lateral neural tube, a markedly increased abundance of neuroepithelium-derived cells outside of the neural tube and an excess of such cells infiltrating the heart and infundibulum. Thus, expression of Cx43 in the CNC is crucial for normal coronary deployment, but Cx43 is not required in the CNC for normal OFT morphogenesis. Rather, this study suggests a novel function for Cx43 in which Cx43 acts through non-crest neuroepithelial cells to suppress cellular delamination from the neural tube and thereby preserve normal OFT development.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Mammalian neural crest and neural crest derivatives.

In the mammalian embryonic trunk, neural crest cells emigrate from the closed neural tube in a cranio-caudal sequences and appear to have similar migration pathways and derivatives to those of avian embryos. In the cranial region, however, there are mammalian-specific features, which are related to the mammalian-specific pattern of cranial neurulation. Midbrain and rostral hindbrain neural crest cells emigrate from widely open neural folds; caudal hindbrain crest emigrates in a caudo-rostral sequence, following the sequence of neural tube closure in this region. The forebrain is also a source of neural crest cells at early stages of neurulation; both forebrain and midbrain crest cells contribute to the frontonasal mesenchyme, although their relative contributions have not been analysed. Few studies have provided direct information about mammalian neural crest cell derivatives. Studies on the effects of retinoid excess on craniofacial development provide indirect evidence that mammalian cranial neural crest, like that of avian embryos, includes two populations whose differentiated phenotype and morphological tissue structure are determined prior to emigration. Retinoid-induced shortening of the preotic hindbrain leads to abnormal migration pathways of the neural crest cells that normally migrate into the mandibular arch to form Meckel's cartilage, so that an ectopic Meckel's cartilage-like structure forms in the maxillary region of the face. Slow descent of the heart in retinoid-exposed embryos enables the "wrong" crest cell population to populate the wall of the truncus arteriosus. These observations correlate well with observations of retinoid-induced craniofacial and heart abnormalities in human infants.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Origin of the avian neural crest.

Neural crest cells are derived from a population of multipotent stem cells within the neural tube. They emerge shortly after neural tube closure, migrate extensively in the embryo and localize in numerous sites, where they differentiate into neurons and glia of the peripheral nervous system, cartilage and bone of the face, melanocytes and various other cell types. This review summarizes recent experiments from our laboratory delineating the origin and lineage of avian neural crest cells. Neural crest cells arise from the ectoderm, which also gives rise to presumptive epidermal, placodal and neural tube cells. Fate mapping experiments have demonstrated that the neural crest arises at the juncture between presumptive epidermis and the neural plate. Inductive interactions between these two early tissues can generate neural crest cells, suggesting that signals travel through the epidermis to generate neural crest cells prior to neural tube closure. Injection of lineage tracer into individual cells reveals that a single neural fold can form all ectodermal derivatives (i.e., epidermis, neural tube, neural crest). Even after neural tube closure, neuroepithelial cells have the capacity to form multiple neural crest and neural tube derivatives, including both dorsal and ventral phenotypes, suggesting that neural tube and neural crest cells share a common precursor. Further evidence that neural crest and neural tube cells are intimately related comes from experiments in which the cranial neural folds are ablated. The remaining neural tube cells have the capacity to regulate, at least for a limited time, to compensate for missing neural crest cells. These experiments suggest that the early neuroepithelium has no clear segregation with respect to the neural tube or neural crest. With time, dorsalizing and ventralizing signals may cause neural tube cells to acquire specific cell fates.

Animals↗
PubMed1995

Origins and developmental potential of the neural crest.

Neural crest cells are a migratory population that forms most of the peripheral nervous system, facial skeleton, and numerous other derivatives. These cells arise from the neural ectoderm and are first recognizable as discrete cells after neural tube closure. In this review, I summarize the results of studies from our laboratory on neural crest cell lineage and origin. Our recent experiments demonstrate that interactions between the presumptive neural plate and the nonneural ectoderm are likely to be instrumental in the induction of the avian neural crest. Juxtaposition of these tissues at early stages results in the formation of neural crest cells at the interface. However, neural crest cells do not appear to be segregated from other neuroepithelial cells; cell lineage studies have demonstrated that individual precursor cells within the neural tube can give rise to both neural crest and neural tube derivatives as diverse as sensory, commissural, and motor neurons. This suggests that individual neuroectodermal cells are multipotent, such that a precursor within the neural tube has the ability to form both neural tube (central nervous system) and neural crest (peripheral nervous system and other) derivatives. Further support for flexibility in the developmental program of neuroepithelial cells comes from experiments in which the cranial neural folds are ablated; this results in regulation by the remaining ventral neural tube cells to form neural crest cells after the endogenous neural crest is removed. At later stage of development, this regulative capacity is lost. Following their emigration from the neural tube, neural crest cells become progressively restricted to defined embryonic states. Taken together, these experiments demonstrate that: (1) the neural crest is an induced population that arises by interactions within the ectoderm; (2) initially, progenitor cells are multipotent, having the potential to form multiple neural crest and neural tube derivatives; and (3) with time, the precursors become progressively restricted to form neural crest derivatives and eventually to individual phenotypes.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Cell lineage analysis of the avian neural crest.

Neural crest cells migrate extensively and give rise to diverse cell types, including cells of the sensory and autonomic nervous systems. A major unanswered question concerning the neural crest is when and how the neural crest cells become determined to adopt a particular fate. We have explored the developmental potential of trunk neural crest cells in avian embryos by microinjecting a vital dye, lysinated rhodamine dextran (LRD), into individual cells within the dorsal neural tube. We find that premigratory and emigrating neural crest cells give rise to descendants with distinct phenotypes in multiple neural crest derivatives. These results are consistent with the idea that neural crest cells are multipotent prior to their emigration from the neural tube and become restricted in phenotype after emigration from the neural tube either during their migration or at their sites of localization. To determine whether neural crest cells become restricted during their migration, we have microinjected individual trunk neural crest cells with dye shortly after they leave the neural tube or as they migrate through the somite. We find that a majority of the clones derived from migrating neural crest cells appear to be multipotent; individual migrating neural crest cells gave rise to both sensory and sympathetic neurons, as well as cells with the morphological characteristics of Schwann cells, and other non-neuronal cells. Even those clones contributing to only one neural crest derivative often contained both neurofilament-positive and neurofilament-negative cells. These data demonstrate that migrating trunk neural crest cells, like their premigratory progenitors, can be multipotent.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Characterization of conotruncal malformations following ablation of "cardiac" neural crest.

Neural crest cells from the cranial region of the neural fold populate the outflow tract of the developing chick heart. Removal of this region of premigratory neural crest has been shown previously to result in a high percentage of conotruncal malformations. The present study was undertaken to define more precisely the regions of premigratory neural crest which are needed for normal conotruncal development. Various regions and lengths of premigratory cranial neural crest were ablated using microcautery. Three defects in conotruncal development were significantly correlated with the neural crest ablation. These were high ventricular septal defect, single outflow vessel originating from the right ventricle, and single outflow vessel overriding the ventricular septum.

Animals↗
PubMed1992

Effects of antibodies against N-cadherin and N-CAM on the cranial neural crest and neural tube.

We have examined the distribution and function of the defined cell adhesion molecules, N-cadherin and N-CAM, in the emigration of cranial neural crest cells from the neural tube in vivo. By immunocytochemical analysis, both N-cadherin and N-CAM were detected on the cranial neural folds prior to neural tube closure. After closure of the neural tube, presumptive cranial neural crest cells within the dorsal aspect of the neural tube had bright N-CAM and weak N-cadherin immunoreactivity. By the 10- to 11-somite stage, N-cadherin was prominent on all neural tube cells with the exception of the dorsal-most cells, which had little or no detectable immunoreactivity. N-CAM, but not N-cadherin, was observed on some migrating neural crest cells after their departure from the cranial neural tube. To examine the functional significance of these molecules, perturbation experiments were performed by injecting antibodies against N-CAM or N-cadherin into the cranial mesenchyme adjacent to the midbrain. Fab' fragments or whole IgGs of monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies against N-CAM caused abnormalities in the cranial neural tube and neural crest. Predominantly observed defects included neural crest cells in ectopic locations, both within and external to the neural tube, and mildly deformed neural tubes containing some dissociating cells. A monoclonal antibody against N-cadherin also disrupted cranial development, with the major defect being grossly distorted neural tubes and some ectopic neural crest cells outside of the neural tube. In contrast, nonblocking N-CAM antibodies and control IgGs had few effects. Embryos appeared to be sensitive to the N-CAM and N-cadherin antibodies for a limited developmental period from the neural fold to the 9-somite stage, with older embryos no longer displaying defects after antibody injection. These results suggest that the cell adhesion molecules N-CAM and N-cadherin are important for the normal integrity of the cranial neural tube and for the emigration of neural crest cells. Because cell-matrix interactions also are required for proper emigration of cranial neural crest cells, the results suggest that the balance between cell-cell and cell-matrix adhesion may be critical for this process.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Migration and differentiation of neural crest and ventral neural tube cells in vitro: implications for in vitro and in vivo studies of the neural crest.

During vertebrate development, neural crest cells migrate from the dorsal neural tube and give rise to pigment cells and most peripheral ganglia. To study these complex processes it is helpful to make use of in vitro techniques, but the transient and morphologically ill-defined nature of neural crest cells makes it difficult to isolate a pure population of undifferentiated cells. We have used several established techniques to obtain neural crest-containing cultures from quail embryos and have compared their subsequent differentiation. We confirm earlier reports of neural crest cell differentiation in vitro into pigment cells and catecholamine-containing neurons. However, our results strongly suggest that the 5-HT-containing cells that develop in outgrowths from thoracic neural tube explants are not neural crest cells. Instead, these cells arise from ventral neural tube precursors that normally give rise to a population of serotonergic neurons in the spinal cord and, in vitro, migrate from the neural tube. Therefore, results based on previously accepted operational definitions of neural crest cells may not be valid and should be reexamined. Furthermore, the demonstration that cells from the ventral (non-neural crest) part of the neural tube migrate in vitro suggests that the same phenomenon may occur in vivo. We propose that the embryonic "neural trough," as well as the neural crest, may contribute to the PNS of vertebrates.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Environmental signals and cell fate specification in premigratory neural crest.

Neural crest cells are multipotent progenitors, capable of producing diverse cell types upon differentiation. Recent studies have identified significant heterogeneity in both the fates produced and genes expressed by different premigratory crest cells. While these cells may be specified toward particular fates prior to migration, transplant studies show that some may still be capable of respecification at this time. Here we summarize evidence that extracellular signals in the local environment may act to specify premigratory crest and thus generate diversity in the population. Three main classes of signals-Wnts, BMP2/BMP4 and TGFbeta1,2,3-have been shown to directly influence the production of particular neural crest cell fates, and all are expressed near the premigratory crest. This system may therefore provide a good model for integration of multiple signaling pathways during embryonic cell fate specification.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Cardiac neural crest.

Neural crest cells (NCCs) contribute to many organs and tissues during embryonic development. Amongst these, the cardiovascular system represents a fascinating example. In this review, recent advances in our understanding of the developmental biology and molecular genetics regulating cardiac NCC maturation will be summarized. While the existence of a significant neural crest (NC) contribution to the developing heart has been appreciated for more than 20 years, only in the last few years have molecular pathways regulating this process been elucidated and the significant contribution of these mechanisms to the etiology of congenital heart disease in man become apparent. Emerging data suggest that ongoing studies will reveal complex inductive interactions between cardiac NC and a series of other cell types contributing to the developing cardiovascular system.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Pagliaccio, a member of the Eph family of receptor tyrosine kinase genes, has localized expression in a subset of neural crest and neural tissues in Xenopus laevis embryos.

Cranial neural crest cells arise from neural folds in the embryonic head and differentiate to produce most of the cartilages and bones of the skull and the somatosensory ganglia of several cranial nerves, among other tissues. Since the molecular basis of the determination of these cells is poorly understood, we have begun a search for molecules involved in signal transduction in cranial neural crest. From a Xenopus laevis cranial neural crest cDNA bank, we have cloned a cDNA encoding a putative receptor tyrosine kinase, which we call Pagliaccio (Pag). Pag RNA is present transiently in visceral arch 3, probably representing neural crest cells in this tissue. Pag is also expressed in the forebrain, rhombomeres r3 and r5 of the hindbrain and in the pronephros. Based on this localized expression, we propose that Pag may play a role in the differentiation of cranial neural crest and other tissues.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Differences and similarities in the neurotrophic growth factor requirements of sensory neurons derived from neural crest and neural placode.

This article reviews recent studies that have examined differences and similarities in the neurotrophic growth factor requirements of neural crest- and neural placode-derived sensory neurons of the developing chick embryo. From in vitro experiments using both explant and dissociated, neuron-enriched cultures of spinal and cranial nerve sensory neurons, it has been established that only sensory neurons of neural crest origin are responsive, at least in terms of survival and neurite outgrowth, to mouse submandibular gland nerve growth factor (NGF). Sensory neurons derived from neural placodes (neurons of the ventrolateral portion of the trigeminal ganglion and the entire neuronal population of the vestibular, geniculate, petrosal and nodose ganglia) are largely unresponsive to NGF throughout embryonic development, but do respond to neurotrophic activity present in extracts of brain and various peripheral 'end-organs', such as heart or liver. By incubation of neuron-enriched cultures with radiolabelled [125I]NGF, followed by autoradiographic exposure, it has been demonstrated that placode-derived neurons, in marked contrast to those of neural crest origin, are completely devoid of specific cell surface receptors for NGF. In contrast to differences in their requirement and responsiveness to NGF, both placode- and crest-derived sensory neurons are responsive to the survival and neurite-promoting activity of a recently purified brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). It is postulated that all primary sensory neurons have a dual growth factor requirement during development; their survival being dependent on a supply of both a peripheral and a central 'target'-derived neurotrophic factor. It appears that BDNF may act as common 'central target-derived' neurotrophic factor for both placode- and crest-derived sensory neurons, but that within peripheral tissues there are specific neurotrophic factors for each of these two classes of primary sensory neurons.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Effects of growth factors on the differentiation of neural crest cells and neural crest cell-derivatives.

During neurulation, neural crest cells migrate to many regions of the body to give rise to a wide variety of cell types. Many premigratory neural crest cells are pluripotent, their potency for differentiation being gradually restricted as they migrate along definite pathways and interact with factors present in the microenvironment. Effects of growth factors on these cells have been discussed in the present review. Mediation of growth factors in differentiation varies with the cell type. Growth factors exert a direct influence on the differentiation of neural and other related neural crest-derived tissues such as endocrinal tissues but evidence for such influences on neural crest-derived mesenchymal tissues is limited. For example, NGF, BDNF, and other factors present in neural tube extracts and glioma cell conditioned medium are essential for the differentiation of sensory neurons. Similarly, NGF, insulin, IGFs and possibly other undescribed factors are necessary for the differentiation of sympathetic neurons. IGFs also enhance the proliferation of mesenchymal derivatives of both neural crest and mesodermal origin. Glucocorticoid-mediated differentiation of neural crest-derived chromaffin endocrine cells that are ontogenetically closely related to sympathetic neurons can be inhibited by NGF, and chromaffin cells can be induced to express the neuronal phenotype by NGF. Some growth factors, such as NGF, act on neural crest- and not on placodally-derived neurons, whether the former are sensory or sympathetic. Placodal sensory neurons possess NGF receptors, but only display a limited response to NGF, perhaps because of low affinity of the receptors. Other growth factors, such as BDNF, selectively act upon sensory neurons, whether neural crest- or placodally-derived. Although extracellular matrix products play a role in initiating the differentiative process, signals from growth factors are necessary for the establishment of the functionally competent phenotype of neural crest-derived neurons, a situation that does not apply for neural crest-derived mesenchymal cells. It is interactions with ECM components deposited by epithelia that govern the differentiation of mesenchymal derivatives. Growth factors do effect proliferation of mesenchymal derivatives and inhibit mesenchymal differentiation. Although direct involvement of single growth factors in transformation o f one mesenchymal phenotype to another has not been reported so far, their localization at sites of epithelial-mesenchymal interactions in palate teeth and mandible, and the ability of excess growth factors to interrupt normal development is suggestive of their possible involvement. One group of growth factors, BMPs, can influence differentiation of cartilage, including those of neural crest origin.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMed2001

Xenopus cadherin-11 restrains cranial neural crest migration and influences neural crest specification.

Cranial neural crest (CNC) cells migrate extensively, typically in a pattern of cell streams. In Xenopus, these cells express the adhesion molecule Xcadherin-11 (Xcad-11) as they begin to emigrate from the neural fold. In order to study the function of this molecule, we have overexpressed wild-type Xcad-11 as well as Xcad-11 mutants with cytoplasmic (deltacXcad-11) or extracellular (deltaeXcad-11) deletions. Green fluorescent protein (GFP) was used to mark injected cells. We then transplanted parts of the fluorescent CNC at the premigratory stage into non-injected host embryos. This altered not only migration, but also the expression of neural crest markers. Migration of transplanted cranial neural crest cells was blocked when full-length Xcad-11 or its mutant lacking the beta-catenin-binding site (deltacXcad-11) was overexpressed. In addition, the expression of neural crest markers (AP-2, Snail and twist) diminished within the first four hours after grafting, and disappeared completely after 18 hours. Instead, these grafts expressed neural markers (2G9, nrp-I and N-Tubulin). Beta-catenin co-expression, heterotopic transplantation of CNC cells into the pharyngeal pouch area or both in combination failed to prevent neural differentiation of the grafts. By contrast, deltaeXcad-11 overexpression resulted in premature emigration of cells from the transplants. The AP-2 and Snail patterns remained unaffected in these migrating grafts, while twist expression was strongly reduced. Co-expression of deltaeXcad-11 and beta-catenin was able to rescue the loss of twist expression, indicating that Wnt/beta-catenin signalling is required to maintain twist expression during migration. These results show that migration is a prerequisite for neural crest differentiation. Endogenous Xcad-11 delays CNC migration. Xcad-11 expression must, however, be balanced, as overexpression prevents migration and leads to neural marker expression. Although Wnt/beta-catenin signalling is required to sustain twist expression during migration, it is not sufficient to block neural differentiation in non-migrating grafts.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Migration and proliferation of cultured neural crest cells in W mutant neural crest chimeras.

Chimeric mice, generated by aggregating preimplantation embryos, have been instrumental in the study of the development of coat color patterns in mammals. This approach, however, does not allow for direct experimental manipulation of the neural crest cells, which are the precursors of melanoblasts. We have devised a system that allows assessment of the developmental potential and migration of neural crest cells in vivo following their experimental manipulation in vitro. Cultured C57Bl/6 neural crest cells were microinjected in utero into neurulating Balb/c or W embryos and shown to contribute efficiently to pigmentation in the host animal. The resulting neural crest chimeras showed, however, different coat pigmentation patterns depending on the genotype of the host embryo. Whereas Balb/c neural crest chimeras showed very limited donor cell pigment contribution, restricted largely to the head, W mutant chimeras displayed extensive pigmentation throughout, often exceeding 50% of the coat. In contrast to Balb/c chimeras, where the donor melanoblasts appeared to have migrated primarily in the characteristic dorsoventral direction, in W mutants the injected cells appeared to migrate in the longitudinal as well as the dorsoventral direction, as if the cells were spreading through an empty space. This is consistent with the absence of a functional endogenous melanoblast population in W mutants, in contrast to Balb/c mice, which contain a full complement of melanocytes. Our results suggest that the W mutation disturbs migration and/or proliferation of endogenous melanoblasts. In order to obtain information on clonal size and extent of intermingling of donor cells, two genetically marked neural crest cell populations were mixed and coinjected into W embryos. In half of the tricolored chimeras, no co-localization of donor crest cells was observed, while, in the other half, a fine intermingling of donor-derived colors had occurred. These results are consistent with the hypothesis that pigmented areas in the chimeras can be derived from extensive proliferation of a few donor clones, which were able to colonize large territories in the host embryo. We have also analyzed the development of pigmentation in neural crest cultures in vitro, and found that neural tubes explanted from embryos carrying wt or weak W alleles produced pigmented melanocytes while more severe W genotypes were associated with deficient pigment formation in vitro.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Defective ALK5 signaling in the neural crest leads to increased postmigratory neural crest cell apoptosis and severe outflow tract defects.

BACKGROUND: Congenital cardiovascular diseases are the most common form of birth defects in humans. A substantial portion of these defects has been associated with inappropriate induction, migration, differentiation and patterning of pluripotent cardiac neural crest stem cells. While TGF-beta-superfamily signaling has been strongly implicated in neural crest cell development, the detailed molecular signaling mechanisms in vivo are still poorly understood. RESULTS: We deleted the TGF-beta type I receptor Alk5 specifically in the mouse neural crest cell lineage. Failure in signaling via ALK5 leads to severe cardiovascular and pharyngeal defects, including inappropriate remodeling of pharyngeal arch arteries, abnormal aortic sac development, failure in pharyngeal organ migration and persistent truncus arteriosus. While ALK5 is not required for neural crest cell migration, our results demonstrate that it plays an important role in the survival of post-migratory cardiac neural crest cells. CONCLUSION: Our results demonstrate that ALK5-mediated signaling in neural crest cells plays an essential cell-autonomous role in the pharyngeal and cardiac outflow tract development.

Activin Receptors, Type I↗
PubMed1989

Plasticity and predetermination of mesencephalic and trunk neural crest transplanted into the region of the cardiac neural crest.

The cardiac neural crest contains ectomesenchymal and neural anlagen that are necessary for normal heart development. It is not known whether other regions of the neural crest are capable of supporting normal heart development. In the experiments reported herein, quail donor embryos provided cardiac, trunk, or mesencephalic neural crest to replace or add to the chick host cardiac neural crest. Neither trunk nor mesencephalic neural crest was capable of generating ectomesenchyme competent to effect truncal septation. Addition of mesencephalic neural crest resulted in a high incidence of persistent truncus arteriosus, suggesting that ectomesenchyme derived from the mesencephalic region interferes with ectomesenchyme derived from the cardiac neural crest. Derivatives from the trunk neural crest, on the other hand, did not result in abnormal development of the truncal septum. While mesencephalic neural crest seeded the cardiac ganglia with both neurons and supporting cells, this capability was limited in the trunk neural crest to the more mature regions. These studies indicate a predetermination of the ectomesenchymal derivatives of the cranial neural crest and a possible competition of neural anlagen to form neurons and supporting cells in the cardiac ganglia.

Animals↗
PubMed1980

Clonal analysis of the avian neural crest: migration and maturation of mixed neural crest clones injected into host chicken embryos.

Quail neural crest cells were grown in vitro at clonal density for 7 to 10 days. Mixed neural crest colonies and clones (containing both pigmented and unpigmented cells) were implanted into the trunk region of 2 1/2-day-old host chicken embryos by a previously described injection technique (Bronner and Cohen '79). Here we describe the migratory behavior and subsequent phenotypic expression of the injected cells. Unpigmented cells and pigmented cells both migrated along the ventral neural crest pathway; there were, however, some differences in migratory behavior between the two cell types. After 3 days in vivo, unpigmented quail neural crest cells contributed to the sympathetic ganglion, adrenal medulla, and/or aortic plexus in the host. Many of the unpigmented cells became catecholamine-containing neuroblasts. Unpigmented cells were never observed in the gonads or the gut, but localized only in regions normally populated by trunk neural crest precursors to neurons and supportive cells. Melanocytes derived from the same precursor, however, were often found in the gonads or gut, in addition to normal neural crest locations in the trunk. These results demonstrate that quail neural crest cells grown in tissue culture for 7 days or more retain the ability to migrate and contribute to normal neural crest structures when placed in the embryonic environment. Under the conditions described, a single neural crest cell gave rise to daughter cells expressing the melanotic phenotype (detected in tissue culture) and adrenergic phenotypes (detected after injection in vivo). This demonstrates that at least some single cells of the premigratory crest in the trunk region are pluripotent.

Adrenergic Fibers↗