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Fundulus deep cells: directional migration in response to epithelial wounding
1Department of Biological Sciences, Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts 01075.
Developmental Biology
|September 1, 1988
Summary
Killifish deep cells exhibit random migration but rapidly move directionally towards yolk sac wounds. This rapid aggregation, driven by a potential wound attractant, offers a model for studying cell movement.
Area of Science:
- Developmental biology
- Cell biology
- Embryogenesis research
Background:
- During killifish embryogenesis, deep cells normally migrate randomly.
- These cells utilize blebbing locomotion and exhibit directional persistence.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the in vivo directional cell migration of killifish deep cells towards wounded yolk sac epithelium.
- To establish Fundulus heteroclitus as a model system for observing directional cell movements.
Main Methods:
- Utilizing the transparent Fundulus heteroclitus embryo for observation.
- Employing time-lapse video micrography to record cell locomotion and aggregation.
- Inducing controlled wounding of the yolk sac epithelium.
Main Results:
- Deep cells rapidly reorient and migrate directionally towards the wound site upon injury.
- Significant cell aggregation occurs within 100 minutes, with cells up to 800 microns away responding.
- Cellular morphology and locomotion modes remain consistent between wounded and unwounded embryos.
Conclusions:
- Wounding imposes a directional cue on a large population of deep cells, leading to aggregation.
- The rapid and widespread response suggests a diffusible attractant originating from the wound site.
- Fundulus embryogenesis provides a valuable model for studying in vivo directional cell migration and wound healing.