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Invagination of the otic placode: normal development and experimental manipulation
S R Hilfer1, R A Esteves, J F Sanzo
1Department of Biology, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19122.
The Journal of Experimental Zoology
|August 1, 1989
Summary
Inner ear development involves invagination of the otic placode. Unlike other organ primordia, otic invagination appears regulated by surrounding tissues, not internal motility.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Neuroscience
- Cell biology
Background:
- The inner ear develops from ectodermal primordia adjacent to the hindbrain.
- Initial stages involve surface depressions and complex folding to form the otic pit.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the mechanisms controlling otic pit formation and invagination.
- To compare otic invagination with that of other organ primordia like the eye and thyroid.
Main Methods:
- Observation of otic primordium folding and invagination.
- Experimental manipulation using agents affecting cytoskeletal motility, calcium transport, and calmodulin.
Main Results:
- Otic invagination involves significant epithelial folding and apposition to the neural tube.
- Unlike eye and thyroid primordia, otic placode invagination is not stimulated by agents activating cytoskeletal motility.
- Inhibitors of calcium transport and calmodulin do not prevent otic pit formation.
Conclusions:
- Otic invagination mechanisms differ from those of other organ primordia.
- Otic invagination may be driven by external tissue changes rather than internal cell motility.