Ciliated cells on the surface of embryos of Scyliorhinus canicula

Monociliated surface cells were found for the first time in an elasmobranch and were common on embryos of Scyliorhinus canicula . They occurred mainly near the anterior end, until Ballard stage 30, but disappeared soon thereafter. The functions of surface ciliated cells suggested in other embryos ( e.g. surface currents in lungfishes and amphibians, and determination of left–right patterns in amniotes) seem unlikely in elasmobranchs.