Publication highlights

Coordination of cell proliferation and migration is fundamental for life, and its dysregulation has catastrophic consequences, but how the two processes interlink remains largely unknown. The Bentley lab, in collaboration with Claudia Linker’s lab at KCL, have studied this problem using computer modelling integrated with zebrafish trunk neural crest cell ((TNC) experiments. TNCs migrate collectively, forming chains where a leader cell directs the movement of trailing followers. Alhashem and coworkers found that initial selection of leader cells is controlled by Notch protein signalling, which also regulates cell cycle progression, giving leader and follower cells distinct proliferation regimes that are required for TNC migration.