The growth cone is a specialization of developing and regenerating neurons which samples the environment and is attracted or repelled by the cues it detects. Different growth cones express different surface receptors or exhibit different second messenger responses to a given cue. The receptors expressed on the growth cone membrane change as the result of the contacts it makes. In a cell with several growth cones, each can assume a distinctive set of features that propel it along different anatomical pathways to different destinations.