Ureter growth and differentiation

The mammalian ureter is a slender tube that connects the renal pelvis with the bladder. It allows the unidirectional movement of urine by means of a peristaltically active smooth muscle layer that together with fibroelastic material ensheathes a water-impermeable multilayered urothelium. The ureteric urothelium as well as the outer mesenchymal coat arise from undifferentiated precursor tissues, the distal ureteric bud and its surrounding mesenchyme, respectively. Specification, growth and differentiation of these ureteric precursor tissues are tightly linked to each other, and are highly integrated with those of the adjacent rudiments of kidney and bladder. Here, we review the current knowledge on the cellular mechanisms as well as the molecular players that guide development of the tissue architecture of the ureter and its peristalsis.