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Intercellular adhesive selectivity. III. Species selectivity of embryonic liver intercellular adhesion
The Journal of Cell Biology
|October 1, 1976
Summary
Embryonic liver cells from different species show distinct adhesive properties, revealing species-specific cell adhesion. This difference is not due to cell type but suggests broader biological identity influences cell sorting during development.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
- Evolutionary Biology
Background:
- Cellular adhesion is crucial for tissue formation and morphogenesis.
- Understanding species-specific differences in cell adhesion can illuminate evolutionary divergence in developmental mechanisms.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively assess species differences in intercellular adhesive selectivity of embryonic liver cells.
- To investigate whether these adhesive differences are cell-type dependent.
- To determine if this selectivity is a general property of all embryonic tissues.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a collecting aggregate assay.
- Employed a novel double-label assay procedure.
- Incorporated histological and autoradiographic techniques.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated significant species-specific differences in the intercellular adhesion of embryonic mammalian and avian liver cells.
- Ruled out differences in cell composition as the cause of observed adhesive disparities.
- Showed that embryonic brain cells do not exhibit similar species-specific adhesive selectivity.
Conclusions:
- Species identity, in addition to cell type, plays a significant role in heterologous-homotypic cell adhesion.
- The findings support a hypothesis linking generic cell identity to adhesive behavior.
- Suggests a potential evolutionary divergence in morphogenetic mechanisms across species.