Vertebrate Embryo: Neural Patterning

The primary step for constructing the central nervous system (CNS) is neural patterning, in which neural cells acquire positional identities. This process involves progressive neural induction, tissue interactions and signalling, which lead to the differentiation of functional compartments that are defined by the combinatorial expression of molecular markers.

Keywords: anterior–posterior; Hox genes; retinoids; fibroblast growth factors; Wnt; dorsal–ventral; BMP (bone morphogenetic protein); Shh (Sonic hedgehog)

Figure 1. A-P patterning of the CNS. The scheme is based on chick development. D, dorsal; V, ventral.
Figure 2. Examples of Hox expression in chick embryos revealed by in situ hybridization with ribonucleic acid (RNA) probes. (a) Hoxb1; (b) Hoxb4; (c) Hoxb9. Arrows indicate anterior-most boundary of expression in the neural tube.
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 Further Reading
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Itasaki, Nobue(Sep 2005) Vertebrate Embryo: Neural Patterning. In: eLS. John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester. http://www.els.net [doi: 10.1038/npg.els.0004192]