User:N1424/NEURAL PLATE

Neural Plate

While the article provides a decent starting point for a discussion of the neural plate, we aim to add much more detail to flesh out the basic details of this structure. We’d like to expand on the various tissues that make up the neural plate, as well as their stages of development. Specifically, we would explain the Carnegie stage of development; currently, the page features only a link and not an explanation. We would also delineate neural plate development in various organisms, comparing and contrasting across species. The current article discusses one growth factor, so we would investigate other protein interactions and cell-signaling actions critical to neural plate development. We would explore lab techniques integral to the investigation of neural plates, as well as attempt to uncover the structure’s history and discovery. We would also include a number of more detailed diagrams and images. Certainly, we would consult numerous other sources to bring the cited sources to include a broader range or papers and databases. Databases through which we have done preliminary research include JSTOR and PubMed. Through these searches, we found the following papers to begin our research:

• "Gene Expression in the Embryonic Nervous System of Xenopus laevis"
• "A transiently expressed connexin is essential for anterior neural plate development in Ciona intestinalis."
• "Experimental Analyses of the Shaping of the Neural Plate and Tube"
• "Longitudinal organization of the anterior neural plate and neural tube"

To divide the work, we're considering the topic in three parts, one for each of us: stages of development, neural plates in different species, and signaling and extracellular interactions.

Jillian Baker, Kim McGing, Maxine Olefsky