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Abstract Vertebrate nervous system function requires glial cells, including myelinating glia that insulate axons and provide trophic support that allows for efficient signal propagation by neurons. In vertebrate peripheral nervous systems, neural crest‐derived glial cells known as Schwann cells (SCs) generate myelin by encompassing and iteratively wrapping membrane around single axon segments. SC gliogenesis and neurogenesis are intimately linked and governed by a complex molecular environment that shapes their developmental trajectory. Changes in this external milieu drive developing SCs through a series of distinct morphological and transcriptional stages from the neural crest to a variety of glial derivatives, including the myelinating sublineage. Cues originate from the extracellular matrix, adjacent axons, and the developing SC basal lamina to trigger intracellular signaling cascades and gene expression changes that specify stages and transitions in SC development. Here, we integrate the findings fromin vitroneuron–glia co‐culture experiments within vivostudies investigating SC development, particularly in zebrafish and mouse, to highlight critical factors that specify SC fate. Ultimately, we connect classic biochemical and mutant studies with modern genetic and visualization tools that have elucidated the dynamics of SC development. This article is categorized under:Signaling Pathways > Cell Fate SignalingNervous System Development > Vertebrates: Regional Development 

Neuroscience is an interdisciplinary field that investigates chemical and cellular foundations for perception, emotion, and memory. At Kenyon College, these concepts are reinforced through class sessions at The Gund, Kenyon’s teaching art museum, in both lower- and upper-level courses within the Department of Neuroscience. Students explore the neurological basis of visual processing through analysis of abstract works in The Gund’s permanent collection. Using guided inquiry, students explore color’s nonobjective properties, the variability of these properties based on context (color consilience), how color and color combinations imply or express textures and surfaces, and why color is often used as a metaphor for emotion. Our class sessions, refined over several semesters, reinforce principles discussed in didactic neuroscience lectures and elicit productive intersections between art and science. By upholding the rigors of scientific inquiry within the gallery, we have centered the art museum as a place for interdisciplinary study. 

Open-ended laboratory projects increase student success and retention in the sciences. However, developing organismal-based research projects is a challenge for students with restricted laboratory access, such as those attending courses remotely. Here I describe the use of image analysis of zebrafish neural development for authentic research projects in an introductory biology laboratory course. Zebrafish are a vertebrate model that produce large numbers of externally and rapidly developing embryos. Because zebrafish larvae are transparent, fluorescent reporters marking nervous system structures can be imaged over time and analyzed by undergraduate scientists. In the pilot of this project, remote first-year college students independently developed biological questions based on an image collection comparing zebrafish mutants and wild-type siblings. Students created and mastered techniques to analyze position, organization, and other morphological features of developing neurons and glia in the images to directly test their biological questions. At the end of the course, students communicated their project results in journal article format and oral presentations. Students were able to hone skills in organismal observation and data collection while studying remotely, and they reported excitement at applying lecture-based knowledge to their own independent questions. This module can be adapted by other instructors for both students on- and off-campus to teach principles of neural development, data collection, data analysis, and scientific communication.