Chase-and-run between adjacent cell populations promotes directional collective migration

Area of Science:

• Developmental Biology
• Cell Migration
• Tissue Morphogenesis

Background:

• Collective cell migration is crucial for development and disease, involving complex interactions between different cell types.
• Understanding how reciprocal cell-cell interactions generate emergent behaviors in migrating cell populations is a key challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the reciprocal interactions between neural crest (NC) cells and placodal cells during collective migration.
• To elucidate the signaling pathways and mechanical forces governing the 'chase-and-run' behavior observed between these cell types.

Main Methods:

• Utilized live imaging microscopy to observe cell behaviors in real-time.
• Employed genetic and pharmacological perturbations to dissect signaling pathways (e.g., chemotaxis, PCP, N-cadherin).
• Analyzed force generation and focal adhesion dynamics during cell-cell interactions.

Main Results:

• Neural crest cells exhibit chemotaxis towards placodal cells, driven by Sdf1 signaling.
• Placodal cells display a repulsive 'run' response upon contact with NC cells, mediated by PCP and N-cadherin.
• This 'chase-and-run' dynamic relies on asymmetric force generation, regulated by local inhibition of focal adhesions.

Conclusions:

• The described 'chase-and-run' mechanism is essential for proper neural crest cell migration and placode segregation in vivo.
• This interaction highlights a generalizable mechanism for coordinated migration involving reciprocal cell behaviors.
• Findings provide insights into how cell-cell communication shapes complex migratory patterns during development.