Abstract
The Anterior Visceral Endoderm is an extraembryonic tissue that plays a pivotal role during embryogenesis, being responsible for the proper orientation of the anterior‐posterior axis of the embryo and for appropriate pattering of adjacent embryonic tissue. In this review I discuss the formation and migration of the AVE, and attempt to place some recent findings in the context of a working model. genesis 44:565–572, 2006.