Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 30, 2026
10:57
Mouse Hindbrain Ex Vivo Culture to Study Facial Branchiomotor Neuron Migration
Published on: March 18, 2014
Motoneurons are essential for vascular pathfinding
Amy H Lim1, Arminda Suli, Karina Yaniv
1Molecular Medicine Program, 15 N 2030 East, Room 4140, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
Development (Cambridge, England)
|August 11, 2011
Summary
Zebrafish Netrin 1a guides motoneuron axons, which is crucial for blood vessel development. This study reveals how nerve guidance is essential for forming lymphatic vessels.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Neuroscience
- Vascular biology
Background:
- Neural and vascular systems utilize shared guidance cues.
- Netrin 1a and Dcc signaling pathways are implicated in cell guidance.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of Netrin 1a in coordinating neural and vascular development.
- To elucidate the mechanism by which motoneuron axon guidance influences lymphangiogenesis.
Main Methods:
- Zebrafish model system.
- Netrin 1a and Dcc gene manipulation (morphants).
- Laser ablation of motoneurons.
- Cellular transplantation and mRNA overexpression.
Main Results:
- Netrin 1a directs Dcc-mediated motoneuron axon guidance at the horizontal myoseptum.
- Axon guidance by Netrin 1a is essential for parachordal chain (PAC) and thoracic duct formation.
- Impaired PAC formation in netrin 1a or Dcc deficient zebrafish was rescued by interventions.
Conclusions:
- Motoneuron axon guidance is a prerequisite for endothelial guidance and lymphangiogenesis.
- This study provides in vivo evidence for axon-dependent vascular patterning.
- Highlights the coordinated development of neural and vascular systems.
Related Concept Videos
01:10Mechanism of Angiogenesis
Blood vessel formation starts early during embryonic development, around day 7. In the extraembryonic yolk sac, mesodermal precursor cells called hemangioblast proliferate and differentiate into angioblast. Angioblasts express vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 or VEGFR2, which binds VEGF-A, a proangiogenic factor, guiding blood vessel formation. VEGF signaling promotes angioblasts to form a blood island in the developing embryo. Angioblasts further differentiate, giving rise to...
01:11Direct Motor Pathways
The direct motor pathways, also known as the pyramidal tracts, are a group of neural pathways that originate in the brain and descend through the spinal cord. They control the voluntary movement of the body. There are two major direct motor pathways: the corticospinal and the corticobulbar tracts.
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and the...
The corticospinal tract is responsible for the voluntary movement of the limbs and trunk. It originates in the cerebral cortex of the brain and descends through the cerebrum's internal capsule and the...
01:22Indirect Motor Pathways
The indirect motor or extrapyramidal pathways originate in the brainstem, the lower portion of the brain that connects it to the spinal cord. They consist of several distinct tracts, each with specialized functions. The four main tracts of the indirect motor pathways are the vestibulospinal tract, the reticulospinal tract, the tectospinal tract, and the rubrospinal tract.
The vestibulospinal tract originates in the vestibular nuclei of the brainstem. The vestibular system detects changes in...
The vestibulospinal tract originates in the vestibular nuclei of the brainstem. The vestibular system detects changes in...
01:28Major Somatic Sensory Pathways
Sensory impulses related to touch, pressure, vibration, and proprioception from various body parts, such as the limbs, trunk, neck, and posterior head, travel to the cerebral cortex through the posterior column-medial lemniscus pathway. The pathway’s name derives from the two white-matter tracts that convey the impulses: the spinal cord's posterior column and the brainstem's medial lemniscus. First-order sensory neurons extend their axons into the spinal cord, forming the posterior columns...
01:19Nervous Tissue: Neuron Types
Neurons, the fundamental units of the nervous system, can be classified based on both their structural and functional characteristics.
Structurally, neurons are categorized into three main types: multipolar, bipolar, and unipolar (or pseudounipolar). Multipolar neurons, which are the most common type in the brain and spinal cord, as well as all motor neurons, possess multiple dendrites and a single axon.
Bipolar neurons, on the other hand, have one primary dendrite and one axon. They are...
Structurally, neurons are categorized into three main types: multipolar, bipolar, and unipolar (or pseudounipolar). Multipolar neurons, which are the most common type in the brain and spinal cord, as well as all motor neurons, possess multiple dendrites and a single axon.
Bipolar neurons, on the other hand, have one primary dendrite and one axon. They are...
01:24Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply
Rapidly dividing tumors, embryos, and wounded tissues require more oxygen than usual, lowering the oxygen concentration in the blood. At low oxygen or hypoxic conditions, an oxygen-sensitive transcription factor called the hypoxia-inducible factor 1 or HIF1 is activated. HIF1 is a dimeric protein of alpha (ɑ) and beta (β) subunits. Under optimal oxygen conditions, HIF1β is present in the nucleus while HIF1ɑ remains in the cytosol. HIF1ɑ is hydroxylated by prolyl hydroxylase and factor...