Avian chimaeras and the study of neuromuscular development

The chimaera of Greek mythology was a fire-breathing monster with lion's head, goat's body and serpent's tail. Transplantation chimaeras used in neurobiology are less fearsome, although they too are composed of parts from genetically dissimilar animals, or of parts from genetically similar animals transplanted to ectopic sites. The technique is a particularly powerful one that combines the anatomic precision of microsurgery with the analytical power of genetics.