Progress in biomechanical mechanism of neurulation

Abstract

Neurulation is a critical step in the early embryonic development of chordate and its failure causes the occurrence of neural tube defect (NTD). This is a type of serious birth defects of the nervous system, including anencephaly, spina bifida, meningeal or encephalocele and myelomeningocele.The average incidence of NTD is 1 per 1000 pregnancies worldwide.Its pathogenesis is not yet clear.Currently, research on neural tube defect has always been elucidated from the perspective of nutrition such as folic acid, or from a molecular potion related to neural tube closure.These efforts have been successful in identifying numerous cell biological processes essential to neurulation and genes associated with neural tube defect.However, as an event of tissue morphogenesis, neurulation is the result of a series of events involving the signaling pathway, cytoskeletal components, cellular, and tissue-level mechanical interactions.Only when the various aspects of neurulation are determined can it be better understood.Developmental biologists have been discussing biomechanical mechanisms that drive neurulation for many years, but there is still a lack of a unified understanding of them.The biomechanical mechanisms involved in neurulation are reviewed. Key words: Neurulation; Biomechanical mechanism; Neural tube defect