|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||
| Home Help Feedback Subscriptions Archive Search Table of Contents | ||||
First published online 18 May 2005
doi: 10.1242/dev.01859
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 Center for Basic Neuroscience, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
75390, USA
2 Division of Molecular Neurobiology, National Institute for Medical Research,
The Ridgeway, Mill Hill, London NW7 1AA, UK
* Author for correspondence (e-mail: Jane.Johnson{at}UTSouthwestern.edu)
Accepted 12 April 2005
The dorsal spinal cord contains a diverse array of neurons that connect sensory input from the periphery to spinal cord motoneurons and brain. During development, six dorsal neuronal populations (dI1-dI6) have been defined by expression of homeodomain factors and position in the dorsoventral axis. The bHLH transcription factors Mash1 and Ngn2 have distinct roles in specification of these neurons. Mash1 is necessary and sufficient for generation of most dI3 and all dI5 neurons. Unexpectedly, dI4 neurons are derived from cells expressing low levels or no Mash1, and this population increases in the Mash1 mutant. Ngn2 is not required for any specific neuronal cell type but appears to modulate the composition of neurons that form. In the absence of Ngn2, there is an increase in the number of dI3 and dI5 neurons, in contrast to the effects produced by activity of Mash1. Mash1 is epistatic to Ngn2, and, unlike the relationship between other neural bHLH factors, cross-repression of expression is not detected. Thus, bHLH factors, particularly Mash1 and related family members Math1 and Ngn1, provide a code for generating neuronal diversity in the dorsal spinal cord with Ngn2 serving to modulate the number of neurons in each population formed.
Key words: Spinal cord development, Dorsal horn, bHLH, Neuronal specification, Mouse, Atoh1, Neurog2, Ascl1
Related articles in Development:
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  M. Sugimori, M. Nagao, C. M. Parras, H. Nakatani, M. Lebel, F. Guillemot, and M. Nakafuku Ascl1 is required for oligodendrocyte development in the spinal cord Development, April 1, 2008; 135(7): 1271 - 1281. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. Iulianella, M. Sharma, M. Durnin, G. B. Vanden Heuvel, and P. A. Trainor Cux2 (Cutl2) integrates neural progenitor development with cell-cycle progression during spinal cord neurogenesis Development, February 15, 2008; 135(4): 729 - 741. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 K. Hori, J. Cholewa-Waclaw, Y. Nakada, S. M. Glasgow, T. Masui, R. M. Henke, H. Wildner, B. Martarelli, T. M. Beres, J. A. Epstein, et al. A nonclassical bHLH Rbpj transcription factor complex is required for specification of GABAergic neurons independent of Notch signaling Genes & Dev., January 15, 2008; 22(2): 166 - 178. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 E. J. Kim, C. T. Leung, R. R. Reed, and J. E. Johnson In Vivo Analysis of Ascl1 Defined Progenitors Reveals Distinct Developmental Dynamics during Adult Neurogenesis and Gliogenesis J. Neurosci., November 21, 2007; 27(47): 12764 - 12774. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
T. Nakatani, Y. Minaki, M. Kumai, and Y. Ono Helt determines GABAergic over glutamatergic neuronal fate by repressing Ngn genes in the developing mesencephalon Development, August 1, 2007; 134(15): 2783 - 2793. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. M. Parras, C. Hunt, M. Sugimori, M. Nakafuku, D. Rowitch, and F. Guillemot The Proneural Gene Mash1 Specifies an Early Population of Telencephalic Oligodendrocytes J. Neurosci., April 18, 2007; 27(16): 4233 - 4242. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
M. Sugimori, M. Nagao, N. Bertrand, C. M. Parras, F. Guillemot, and M. Nakafuku Combinatorial actions of patterning and HLH transcription factors in the spatiotemporal control of neurogenesis and gliogenesis in the developing spinal cord Development, April 15, 2007; 134(8): 1617 - 1629. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 D. J. Greenway, M. Street, A. Jeffries, and N. J. Buckley RE1 Silencing Transcription Factor Maintains a Repressive Chromatin Environment in Embryonic Hippocampal Neural Stem Cells Stem Cells, February 1, 2007; 25(2): 354 - 363. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. Battiste, A. W. Helms, E. J. Kim, T. K. Savage, D. C. Lagace, C. D. Mandyam, A. J. Eisch, G. Miyoshi, and J. E. Johnson Ascl1 defines sequentially generated lineage-restricted neuronal and oligodendrocyte precursor cells in the spinal cord Development, January 15, 2007; 134(2): 285 - 293. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Q. Ma Transcriptional regulation of neuronal phenotype in mammals J. Physiol., September 1, 2006; 575(2): 379 - 387. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C.-H. Park, J. S. Kang, J.-S. Kim, S. Chung, J.-Y. Koh, E.-H. Yoon, A. Y. Jo, M.-Y. Chang, H.-C. Koh, S. Hwang, et al. Differential actions of the proneural genes encoding Mash1 and neurogenins in Nurr1-induced dopamine neuron differentiation J. Cell Sci., June 1, 2006; 119(11): 2310 - 2320. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
H. Wildner, T. Muller, S.-H. Cho, D. Brohl, C. L. Cepko, F. Guillemot, and C. Birchmeier dILA neurons in the dorsal spinal cord are the product of terminal and non-terminal asymmetric progenitor cell divisions, and require Mash1 for their development Development, June 1, 2006; 133(11): 2105 - 2113. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. Kele, N. Simplicio, A. L. M. Ferri, H. Mira, F. Guillemot, E. Arenas, and S.-L. Ang Neurogenin 2 is required for the development of ventral midbrain dopaminergic neurons Development, February 1, 2006; 133(3): 495 - 505. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. M. Glasgow, R. M. Henke, R. J. MacDonald, C. V. E. Wright, and J. E. Johnson Ptf1a determines GABAergic over glutamatergic neuronal cell fate in the spinal cord dorsal horn Development, December 15, 2005; 132(24): 5461 - 5469. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
