Catecholamines and morphogenesis of the chick neural tube and notochord

Catecholamines in the early chick embryo (days 2–3) were studied using the Falck‐Hillarp technique. After treating specimens with nor‐epinephrine, specific catecholamine fluorescence was localized in the early neural tube of the youngest embryos (stages 7–9). In older embryos (stages 10–12) exposed to exogenous norepinephrine the fluorescence was seen in both the neural tube and notochord and by stage 13 fluorescence was brighter in the notochord than neural tube. Endogenous notochord catecholamine fluorescence was demonstrable in stages 13 through 17 without exposure to exogenous amines although treatment with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (nialamide) or norepinephrine intensified the fluorescence. Treatment of embryos with nialamide or an inhibitor of catecholamine synthesis (α‐Methyltyrosine) caused numerous archencephalic anomalies, ventral flexure of the head without lateral rotation, and spina bifida. The results suggest that catecholamines in the early neural tube and notochord may provide the motive force for morphogenetic movements, including closure of the neural folds and torsion of the embryo.