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Updated: Mar 25, 2026
09:52
Visualizing Neuroblast Cytokinesis During C. elegans Embryogenesis
Published on: March 12, 2014
12.5K
Mechanical forces drive neuroblast morphogenesis and are required for epidermal closure
Denise Wernike1, Yun Chen1, Karina Mastronardi1
1Department of Biology, Concordia University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
Developmental Biology
|March 1, 2016
Summary
During Caenorhabditis elegans development, myosin coordinates cell movements in both epidermal and neuroblast tissues. This coordinated tissue morphogenesis is essential for embryonic ventral enclosure.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
- Biophysics
Background:
- Tissue morphogenesis involves coordinated cell behaviors like shape changes and migration.
- Simultaneous morphogenesis of multiple tissues in vivo is not well understood.
- Myosin-dependent processes are crucial for these cellular events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the simultaneous morphogenesis of epidermal and neuroblast tissues during Caenorhabditis elegans ventral enclosure.
- To elucidate the role of myosin in coordinating cellular events between these two tissues.
Main Methods:
- Live imaging of Caenorhabditis elegans embryos.
- Immunofluorescence staining for myosin, E-cadherin, and α-catenin.
- Genetic manipulation of neuroblast cell division and fate.
Main Results:
- Myosin accumulates in ventral epidermal cells, forming a ring essential for closure.
- Myosin foci and adhesion proteins accumulate in underlying neuroblasts.
- Neuroblast reorganization into a rosette-like pattern and surface area decrease occur concurrently with epidermal constriction.
- Myosin in neuroblasts is required for ventral enclosure, influencing epidermal cell constriction.
Conclusions:
- Myosin-dependent mechanical forces between neuroblasts and overlying epidermal cells coordinate morphogenesis during ventral enclosure.
- Inter-tissue mechanical force coordination may be a common mechanism in metazoan development.
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