Control of retinal growth and axon divergence at the chiasm: lessons from Xenopus

Metamorphosis in frogs is a critical developmental process through which a tadpole changes into an adult froglet. Metamorphic changes include external morphological transformations as well as important changes in the wiring o f sensory organs and central nervous system. This review aims to provide an overview on the events that occur in the visual system of metamorphosing a mphibians and to discuss recent studies that provide new insight into the m olecular mechanisms that control changes in the retinal growth pattern as w ell as the formation of new axonal pathways in the central nervous system. (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.