The first edition of The Neural Crest appeared in 1982. As I wrote in the preface at that time, it “marked a step in a venture which started twelve years before when I noticed that the nucleus of quail cells has a characteristic structure and can be distinguished at first glance from its chick counterpart.” Quail-chick chimeras used to follow the behavior and fate of neural crest cells in the avian embryo had proved an efficient tool to decipher the participation of this structure in forming key structures that constitute the body of higher vertebrates.

During the period of time separating these two editions, developmental biology has considerably benefited from the recent advances in cell and molecular biology. Many new investigators have become interested in the ontogeny of the neural crest; certain questions raised in the early work have been answered and new avenues of research are now open. The present book is an illustration of such an evolution, as two friends and colleagues, former mentor and student, have joined their expertise and deep interest in the subject to reevaluate our knowledge on the ontogeny of this fascinating embryonic structure. Our ambition is not only to provide the reader with the most up-to-date information but hopefully also to raise the interest of newcomers to the field.

Both Chaya Kalcheim and myself wish to express our deep gratitude to the colleagues and friends who helped us during the preparation of this book.