In Vivo Quantitative Imaging Provides Insights into Trunk Neural Crest Migration
Abstract
Neural crest (NC) cells undergo extensive migrations during development. Here, we couple in vivo live imaging at high resolution with custom software tools to reveal dynamic migratory behavior in chick embryos. Trunk NC cells migrate as individuals with both stochastic and biased features as they move dorsoventrally to form peripheral ganglia. Their leading edge displays a prominent fan-shaped lamellipodium that reorients upon cell-cell contact. Computational analysis reveals that when the lamellipodium of one cell touches the body of another, the two cells undergo "contact attraction," often moving together and then separating via a pulling force exerted by lamellipodium. Targeted optical manipulation shows that cell interactions coupled with cell density generate a long-range biased random walk behavior, such that cells move from high to low density. In contrast to chain migration noted at other axial levels, the results show that individual trunk NC cells navigate the complex environment without tight coordination between neighbors.
Additional Information
© 2019 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/). Received 10 October 2018, Revised 29 December 2018, Accepted 10 January 2019, Available online 5 February 2019. We thank Dr. Vikas Trivedi (EMBL) for critically reading the manuscript and the Caltech Biological Imaging Center for sharing equipment. W.G.G. was supported by the Della Martin Foundation, the American Heart Association, and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. This project was supported by DE024157 and DE027568 (to M.E.B.).] Author Contributions: Y.L. and M.E.B. conceived of the project with consultation from F.M.V. Y.L. designed the experiments, performed the molecular cloning, virus preparation, live imaging, laser ablation, and cell spot and surface segmentation. F.M.V. performed viral injections and slice cultures and provided helpful suggestions on experimental design. Y.L. and F.M.V. performed the immunofluorescence. W.G.G. developed the software tools for cell-surface segmentation and performed the cell morphological analysis. A.L. performed the cell trajectory analysis. W.G.G. and A.L. performed the statistical analysis. W.T. provided help on slice cultures and improving the titers of virus. C.L. provided helpful discussion. Y.L. and M.E.B. wrote the manuscript with consultation from W.G.G, A.L., and F.M.V. The authors declare no competing interests.Attached Files
Published - 1-s2.0-S2211124719300579-main.pdf
Accepted Version - nihms-1520925.pdf
Supplemental Material - 1-s2.0-S2211124719300579-mmc1.pdf
Files
Additional details
- PMCID
- PMC6449054
- Eprint ID
- 92666
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20190205-105428612
- Della Martin Foundation
- American Heart Association
- Burroughs Wellcome Fund
- DE024157
- NIH
- DE027568
- NIH
- Created
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2019-02-05Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2022-03-01Created from EPrint's last_modified field