Deterministic and stochastic elements of axonal guidance.

An enormous literature has been developed on investigations of the growth and guidance of axons during development and after injury. In this review, we provide a guide to this literature as a resource for biomedical investigators. We first review briefly the molecular biology that is known to regulate migration of the growth cone and branching of axonal arbors. We then outline some important fundamental considerations that are important to the modeling of the phenomenology of these guidance effects and of what is known of their underlying internal mechanisms. We conclude by providing some thoughts on the outlook for future biomedical modeling in the field.