Extracellular matrix motion and early morphogenesis

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Abstract
For over a century, embryologists who studied cellular motion in early amniotes generally assumed that morphogenetic movement reflected migration relative to a static extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffold. However, as we discuss in this Review, recent investigations reveal that the ECM is also moving during morphogenesis. Time-lapse studies show how convective tissue displacement patterns, as visualized by ECM markers, contribute to morphogenesis and organogenesis. Computational image analysis distinguishes between cell-autonomous (active) displacements and convection caused by large-scale (composite) tissue movements. Modern quantification of large-scale ‘total’ cellular motion and the accompanying ECM motion in the embryo demonstrates that a dynamic ECM is required for generation of the emergent motion patterns that drive amniote morphogenesis.
Funding Information
  • G. Harold and Leila Y. Mathers Foundation
  • National Institutes of Health (GM102801)
  • Ministry of National Development (KTIA AIK 12-1-2013-0041)

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