The distribution of endocrine cell progenitors in the gut of chick embryos

The aim of this experiment was to find out whether or not, at early stages of development, progenitors of the various types of gut endocrine cells are localized to one or more specific regions of the gastrointestinal tract. Transverse strips of blastoderm two to four somites in length were excised between the levels of somites 5 and 27 in chick embryos at 5- to 24-somite stages and were cultured as chorioallantoic grafts. The distribution of endocrine cells in the grafts revealed confined localization of progenitor cells only in the case of insulin-immunoreactive cells. The progenitors of cells with somatostatin-, pancreatic polypeptide-, glucagon-, secretin-, gastrin/CCK-, motilin-, neurotensin- and serotonin-like immunoreactivity were distributed along the length of the presumptive gut at the time of explantation; indeed, in many cases they were more widespread than are their differentiated progeny in normal gut of the same age. This finding indicates that conditions in grafts must differ from those that operate in the intact embryo. Also it may explain the occurrence of ectopic gut or pancreatic endocrine cells in tumours of the digestive tract.