Identification of major cell classes in the developing mammalian nervous system

A major difficulty in studying early developmental processes and testing hypotheses of possible cellular mechanisms of development has been the inability to reproducibly identify specific cell types. We have generated monoclonal antibodies that distinguish among major cell types present during mammalian neurogenesis. These antibodies have been used to analyze the development of cellular organization in the early nervous system. Monoclonal antibody Rat-401 identifies a transient radial glial cell in the embryonic rat central nervous system (CNS) that is temporally and spatially suited to guide neuronal migration. Rat-401 also identifies a peripheral non-neuronal cell that may establish axon routes from the CNS to the periphery. Monoclonal antibody Rat-202 recognizes an antigen present in early axons, their growth cones, and filopodia, and has allowed us to follow early axons and observe the structures they contact. Two other antibodies that recognize axons demonstrate antigenically distinct phases in axon development. In addition, we report a marker for another cell class present in the developing nervous system, the endothelial cells that give rise to the CNS vasculature.