Open AccessInitial neurogenesis in Drosophila
Author(s) -
Hartenstein Volker,
Wodarz Andreas
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
wiley interdisciplinary reviews: developmental biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.779
H-Index - 45
eISSN - 1759-7692
pISSN - 1759-7684
DOI - 10.1002/wdev.111
Subject(s) - ectoderm , neuroblast , neurogenesis , biology , neural plate , nervous system , microbiology and biotechnology , proneural genes , neural stem cell , neural tube , neuroscience , progenitor cell , neural development , cell fate determination , embryonic stem cell , neuroectoderm , neurod , embryo , embryogenesis , mesoderm , stem cell , cellular differentiation , genetics , transcription factor , gene
Early neurogenesis comprises the phase of nervous system development during which neural progenitor cells are born. In early development, the embryonic ectoderm is subdivided by a conserved signaling mechanism into two main domains, the epidermal ectoderm and the neurectoderm. Subsequently, cells of the neurectoderm are internalized and form a cell layer of proliferating neural progenitors. In vertebrates, the entire neurectoderm folds into the embryo to give rise to the neural tube. In Drosophila and many other invertebrates, a subset of neurectodermal cells, called neuroblasts (NBs), delaminates and forms the neural primordium inside the embryo where they divide in an asymmetric, stem cell‐like mode. The remainder of the neurectodermal cells that stay behind at the surface loose their neurogenic potential and later give rise to the ventral part of the epidermis. The genetic and molecular analysis of the mechanisms controlling specification and proliferation of NBs in the Drosophila embryo, which played a significant part in pioneering the field of modern developmental neurobiology, represents the topic of this review. WIREs Dev Biol 2013, 2:701–721. doi: 10.1002/wdev.111 This article is categorized under: Establishment of Spatial and Temporal Patterns > Repeating Patterns and Lateral Inhibition Signaling Pathways > Cell Fate Signaling Nervous System Development > Flies