Differential distribution of cell protrusions on the ventral surface of the deep layer in gastrulating quail and chick embryos.
The ventral surface of the deep layer of gastrulating quail and chick embryos was examined using scanning electron microscopy. On the basis of cell protrusions, three or four different cell types were recognized. Cells covered with microplicae were found in the caudal region of the germ and as a narrow band extending along the lateral and anterior borders of the area pellucida. Cells covered with microvilli were found in a horseshoe-shaped zone in the anterior part of the germ. Beneath the rostral end of the primitive streak, the flattened deep-layer cells exhibited intercellular ridges and few microvilli. This area was surrounded by cells that usually had extended microvilli. The pattern of these cell types is discussed in relation to the formation of the different tissues that compose the deep layer in gastrulating embryos.
Department of Anatomy and Embryology, State University Centre of Antwerp, Belgium.
L
L
Andries
F
F
Harrisson
M
M
Callebaut
D000818:Animals; D001756:Blastoderm / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D002462:Cell Membrane / Q000648:ultrastructure; D002642:Chick Embryo / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005775:Gastrula / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D008871:Microvilli / Q000648:ultrastructure; D011784:Quail / Q000196:embryology*