Abstract

Cell Interactions in Differentiation is a collection of papers presented at the Sixth Sigrid Jusélius Foundation Symposium held in Helsinki, Finland, in August 1976. Contributors discuss cell interactions during differentiation, particularly referring to the problem of embryonic induction. They also consider how a cell becomes adjusted to the synchronized development of an entire multicellular organism, so as to express its genetic information at a strictly controlled time and place.
This volume is organized into five sections encompassing 30 chapters and begins with an overview of embryonic cells and their two fundamental properties. Cells are not necessarily predetermined and can be experimentally diverted from their normal developmental pathway, and those within an embryonic organism require extrinsic messages to express their developmental capacities. The next chapters focus on early determinative events in embryogenesis, touching on topics such as the genetic aspects of cell type determination, interactions between embryonic cells during the early development of the mouse, and the differentiation of teratocarcinoma stem cells in vitro. The reader is then introduced to positional information and morphogenetic signals; the biological ""specificity"" of morphogenetic tissue interactions; and the molecular mechanisms underlying cell contact interactions. The remaining chapters explore some of the most important conceptual and methodological approaches to the problems of cell-cell recognition and the integration of cells into multicellular systems.
This book will be of interest to scientists and investigators in developmental biology and related fields.