The role of actomyosin contractility in zebrafish neural tube formation through hollowing.
type: CreativeWork
description: The neural tube is an epithelial tube that forms the embryonic brain and spinal cord through the process of neurulation. In amniotes, it forms in two different ways: in the anterior region, primary neurulation occurs through the folding of an already polarised epithelial sheet; and posteriorly, secondary neurulation occurs through de novo apical-basal cell polarisation in the centre of a solid rod and the tube opens through hollowing. The zebrafish hindbrain forms via a secondary-like mechanism, making it an ideal in vivo model to study hollowing lumen formation. While the role of actomyosin contractility is well understood in primary neurulation, for example through constriction of apical-lateral junctions to mediate neural plate bending, its role in secondary neurulation is less clear. In this thesis, I investigated the role of actomyosin contractility over the course of zebrafish neurulation to understand its role in lumen inflation. To explore where forces are active during zebrafish neural tube lumen opening, I conducted live imaging and collaborated with the Cambridge Advanced Imaging Centre to generate 3D segmentations of the lumen and surrounding tissue over time. These quantifications were then used to build a 2D vertex model of a cross section of the lumen in collaboration with the Richards Lab at the University of Exeter to investigate the force balance that could lead to proper lumen opening. The live imaging showed that an increase in lumen occupancy over time is accompanied by an increase in apical surface area, tissue volume, and apical-basal tissue width. The model predicted that the observed lumen growth and triangular-shaped lumen could be explained by tissue and lumen expansion, and the presence of higher apical tension compared to basal tension in the cells. This suggests that a balance of hydrostatic pressure and apical tension is important during lumen opening. I next investigated the role of actomyosin contractility in generating this force ba…
abstract: The neural tube is an epithelial tube that forms the embryonic brain and spinal cord through the process of neurulation. In amniotes, it forms in two different ways: in the anterior region, primary neurulation occurs through the folding of an already polarised epithelial sheet; and posteriorly, secondary neurulation occurs through de novo apical-basal cell polarisation in the centre of a solid rod and the tube opens through hollowing. The zebrafish hindbrain forms via a secondary-like mechanism, making it an ideal in vivo model to study hollowing lumen formation. While the role of actomyosin contractility is well understood in primary neurulation, for example through constriction of apical-lateral junctions to mediate neural plate bending, its role in secondary neurulation is less clear. In this thesis, I investigated the role of actomyosin contractility over the course of zebrafish neurulation to understand its role in lumen inflation. To explore where forces are active during zebrafish neural tube lumen opening, I conducted live imaging and collaborated with the Cambridge Advanced Imaging Centre to generate 3D segmentations of the lumen and surrounding tissue over time. These quantifications were then used to build a 2D vertex model of a cross section of the lumen in collaboration with the Richards Lab at the University of Exeter to investigate the force balance that could lead to proper lumen opening. The live imaging showed that an increase in lumen occupancy over time is accompanied by an increase in apical surface area, tissue volume, and apical-basal tissue width. The model predicted that the observed lumen growth and triangular-shaped lumen could be explained by tissue and lumen expansion, and the presence of higher apical tension compared to basal tension in the cells. This suggests that a balance of hydrostatic pressure and apical tension is important during lumen opening. I next investigated the role of actomyosin contractility in generating this force ba…
author: Race, Amelia
language: eng
keywords: zebrafish, neurulation, cilia, lumenogenesis, mechanotransduction, blebbistatin, actomyosin contractility
license: https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/950cb1b4-933d-4240-93ef-e3803b1f7679/download
license: http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved
date published: 2024-09-27
date modified: 2026-07-22T22:24:30Z
provider: Cambridge University
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Cambridge

PropertyValue
property ID: DOI
value: 10.17863/CAM.117332