Morphological foundations of precartilage development in mesenchyme

Hyaline cartilage is archetypic for the appendicular skeleton and the vertebral column. It arises from pluirpotential mesenchymal ancestor cells that remain morphologically undifferentiated prior to a localized cell aggregation in specific regions destined to undergo chondrogenesis. The critical ultrastructural studies of limb bud mesenchymal differentiation prior to, during, and after aggregation were largely completed during the 1970s. These studies accurately and reproducibly described the changes in the cells and matrix with reference to the developmental stages of the embryonic chick and mouse. Collectively, the morphological literature concerning mouse and chick chondrogenesis is in fundamental agreement on the timing and sequence of cell and matrix changes. The morphological observations are foundational and are now extensively correlated with the molecular events of cartilage differentiation.