Role of polarized cell divisions in zebrafish neural tube formation

Development of epithelial cell polarity and morphogenesis of a central lumen are essential prerequisites for the formation of the vertebrate neural tube. In teleost fish embryos this first involves the formation of a solid neural rod structure that then undergoes a process of cavitation to form a lumen. This process is initiated from a neural plate that has a distinct organization compared to other vertebrates, and involves complex cell intercalations and rearrangements. A key element is a mode of polarized cell division that generates daughters with mirror-image apico-basal polarity. These mirror-symmetric divisions have powerful morphogenetic influence because when they occur in ectopic locations they orchestrate the development of ectopic apical and basal specializations and the development of ectopic neural tubes.