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Fig. 7 (A) Diagram of zebrafish alx3 expression in post-migratory frontonasal NCCs surrounding the nasal placode (np) at 24 hpf. (B) Schematic summarizing the neurocranium skeletal phenotypes found in alx3 mutants. In wild types, the anterior ethmoid plate comprises two populations of chondrocytes and the sword-shaped parasphenoid bone extends to an anterior point. In alx3 mutants, the ethmoid plate chondrocyte morphology and differentiation timing are more homogeneous and the parasphenoid bone is anteriorly truncated. (C) Lineage trajectory analyses predict a sequence of cellular states in frontonasal NCCs. The immature, early cells pass through three alternative trajectories towards mature, late cell states. alx3 expression is strongly enriched along one trajectory. (D) alx3 function is required in post-migratory frontonasal NCCs for distinct skeletal cell populations in the zebrafish neurocranium. A, anterior; D, dorsal; L, lateral; M, medial; P, posterior; V, ventral.