Description
| - Neural development comprises the processes that generate, shape, and reshape the nervous system, from the earliest stages of embryogenesis to the final years of life. The study of neural development aims to describe the cellular basis of brain development and to address the underlying mechanisms. The field draws on both neuroscience and developmental biology to provide insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which complex nervous systems develop. Defects in neural development can lead to cognitive, motor, and intellectual disability, as well as neurological disorders such as autism, Rett syndrome, and mental retardation.
The nervous system is derived from the ectoderm, the outermost tissue layer, of the embryo. In the third week of development the neuroectoderm appears and forms the neural plate along the dorsal side of the embryo. This neural plate is the source of the majority of all neurons and glial cells in the mature human. A groove forms in the neural plate and,...
|