neural crest cell

The neural crest (NC) is a group of cells that transiently appears during development, and has been referred to as the fourth germ layer because it differentiates into various cell types. In vertebrates, it detaches from the dorsal ridge of the neural crest cell (NCC) neural tube and then migrates extensively in the developing embryo during neurogenesis1~3). Cranial neural crest cells migrate to the pharyngeal arch, make up most of the craniofacial complex, and eventually become the mesenchymal tissue that forms teeth, cartilage, craniofacial bone, and connective tissue. They also differentiate into cranial ganglia4~6). Cardiac neural crest cells contribute to the development of the heart, vagal neural crest cells contribute to the development of the intestinal ganglion of the intestines, and trunk neural crest cells move along the dorsal and lateral pathways. They also differentiate into melanocytes, sympathetic ganglion cells, and adrenal chromaffin cells7). Neural crest cells are a transient population of cells that are difficult to recover from a developing embryo. However, recently the development of a method for inducing differentiation of mouse or human pluripotent stem cells into neural crests has been reported8),9), giving a boost to research on the neural crest and the development of drug efficacy evaluation methods using the neural crest10).

Reference

1) Dev Biol. 1993; 159 (1): 1-11.

2) Cell Stem Cell. 2008; 2(4): 392-403.

3) Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2009; 379(4): 1114-9.

4) Nat Rev Neurosci. 2003; 4(10): 806-18.

5) J Anat. 2005; 207(5): 575-601.

6) Dev Biol. 2010; 344(2): 543-54.

7) Multipotentiality of the neural crest. 2003.

8) Oral Diseases. 2017; 23: 559–565

9) Methods Mol Biol. 2019;1965: 35-48

10) Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 2011; 108: 19240-19245.

Related terms

Case studies related to this term

    Contact us