Development and Plasticity of a Neural Crest-Derived Neuroendocrine Sublineage

Abstract

Neural crest cells migrate from the top of the neural tube and differentiate into a diverse array of cell types after dispersing throughout the embryo. The behavior and fate of this precursor population poses a number of problems at both the cellular and molecular levels. At the cellular level, we wish to know what developmental choices are faced by migrating neural crest cells, and how those choices change at different stages. We also need to know the environmental factors, if any, that act on crest cells to control these choices. Once we know the choices and the factors, at the molecular level, we wish to understand the intracellular circuitry that controls the activation and repression of specific batteries of genes during a developmental decision. We also seek to understand the developmental mechanisms that determine the repertoire of potential fates from which the cell chooses a particular pathway of differentiation. Finally, in those cases where phenotypically stable cells are plastic, we wish to know the conditions that permit such plasticity.