title: In Vitro Derivation of Melanocytes from Embryonic Neural Crest Stem Cells.
abstract: During development, melanocyte progenitors originate from the neural crest, a transient embryonic structure in vertebrates that gives rise to a variety of cell types including neurons and glia of the peripheral nervous system, smooth muscle cells of the cardiovascular system, chondrocytes and osteoblasts of the craniofacial elements, and pigment cells in the skin. In this chapter, we describe a method for the differentiation of multipotent embryonic neural crest stem cells into differentiated pigmented melanocytes by using in vitro explant culture system. This protocol allows the dissection of genetic and cellular mechanisms regulating neural crest stem cell and melanocyte development. Based on this knowledge it is possible to make predictions about processes that might also be implicated in melanoma initiation and progression.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, University Hospital Zurich, Wagistrasse 14, 8952, Schlieren, Switzerland. olga.shakhova@usz.ch.|Institute of Anatomy, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland. olga.shakhova@usz.ch.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Shakhova
authors.affiliation: Institute of Anatomy, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Lukas
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Sommer
keywords: Melanocyte differentiation; Neural crest; Stem cells