Neural cell contact and axonal growth.

The past year has seen significant advances in the identification and characterization of novel vertebrate cell-surface components implicated in neural cell adhesion and axonal growth. These new cell-surface-associated proteins can be categorized into three major structural groups: the cadherins, the integrins and the immunoglobulin superfamily. Studies on the biological function of these proteins indicate that they participate in developmental events of the embryonic nervous system.