The mesenchyme originates from the mesoderm.[6] From the mesoderm, the mesenchyme appears as an embryologically primitive "soup". This "soup" exists as a combination of the mesenchymal cells plus serous fluid plus the many different tissue proteins. Serous fluid is typically stocked with the many serous elements, such as sodium and chloride. The mesenchyme develops into the tissues of the lymphatic and circulatory systems, as well as the musculoskeletal system. This latter system is characterized as connective tissues throughout the body, such as bone, and cartilage. A malignant cancer of mesenchymal cells is a type of sarcoma.[7][8]
The first cells of the embryo to undergo EMT and form mesenchyme are the extra-embryonic cells of the trophectoderm. These migrate from the body of the blastocyst into the endometrial layer of the uterus in order to contribute to the formation of the anchored placenta.[16]
Primary mesenchyme
Primary mesenchyme is the first embryonic mesenchymal tissue to emerge, and it is produced from EMT in epiblast cells. In the epiblast, it is induced by the primitive streak through Wnt signaling, and produces endoderm and mesoderm from a transitory tissue called mesendoderm during the process of gastrulation.[17]
The formation of primary mesenchyme depends on the expression of WNT3. Other deficiencies in signaling pathways, such as in Nodal (a TGF-beta protein), will lead to defective mesoderm formation.[9]
The tissue layers formed from the primitive streak invaginate together into the embryo and the induced mesenchymal stem cells will ingress and form the mesoderm. Mesodermal tissue will continue to differentiate and/or migrate throughout the embryo to ultimately form most connective tissue layers of the body.[18]
Neural mesenchyme
Embryological mesenchyme is particularly transitory and soon differentiates after migration. Neural mesenchyme forms soon after primary mesenchyme formation.[19]
In some invertebrates, such as Porifera, Cnidaria, Ctenophora, and some triploblasts (namely the acoelomates), the term "mesenchyme" refers to a more-or-less solid but loosely organized tissue that consists of a gel matrix (the mesoglea) with various cellular and fibrous inclusions, located between the epidermis and the gastrodermis (non-triploblast animals usually are considered to lack "connective" tissue). In some cases, the mesoglea is noncellular.[24]
In diploblasts (Cnidaria and Ctenophora), the mesenchyme is fully ectodermally derived. This kind of mesenchyme is called ectomesodermal, and is not considered true mesoderm.
In triploblastic acoelomates (such as flatworms), the term parenchyma is sometimes used for the middle (mesenchymal) layer, in which the dense layer includes tissues derived from both ectoderm, and entomesoderm (true mesoderm, derived from entoderm).
When cellular material is sparse or densely packed, as in cnidarians, the mesenchyme may sometimes be called collenchyma, or parenchyma in flatworms.[25] When no cellular material is present as in Hydrozoa, the layer is properly called mesoglea.[25]
In some colonial cnidarians, the mesenchyme is perforated by gastrovascular channels continuous among colony members. This entire matrix of common basal material is called coenenchyme.[25]
^Trainor, P. A. (2005). "Specification of neural crest cell formation and migration in mouse embryos". Seminars in Cell & Developmental Biology. 16 (6): 683–93. doi:10.1016/j.semcdb.2005.06.007. PMID16043371.