Search results for "Corticogenesis"
showing 10 items of 13 documents
Microenvironments to study migration and somal translocation in cortical neurons
2018
Migrating post-mitotic neurons of the developing cerebral cortex undergo terminal somal translocation (ST) when they reach their final destination in the cortical plate. This process is crucial for proper cortical layering and its perturbation can lead to brain dysfunction. Here we present a reductionist biomaterials platform that faithfully supports and controls the distinct phases of terminal ST in vitro. We developed microenvironments with different adhesive molecules to support neuronal attachment, neurite extension, and migration in distinct manners. Efficient ST occurred when the leading process of migratory neurons crossed from low-to high-adhesive areas on a substrate, promoting spr…
The neuroanatomy of Eml1 knockout mice, a model of subcortical heterotopia
2018
Symposium issue: Human Cortex Developmentidentifiant wos: 000482426800014; International audience; The cerebral cortex is a highly organized structure responsible for advanced cognitive functions. Its development relies on a series of steps including neural progenitor cell proliferation, neuronal migration, axonal outgrowth and brain wiring. Disruption of these steps leads to cortical malformations, often associated with intellectual disability and epilepsy. We have generated a new resource to shed further light on subcortical heterotopia, a malformation characterized by abnormal neuronal position. We describe here the generation and characterization of a knockout (KO) mouse model for Eml1,…
Double In Utero Electroporation to Target Temporally and Spatially Separated Cell Populations.
2020
In utero electroporation is an in vivo DNA transfer technique extensively used to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying mammalian corticogenesis. This procedure takes advantage of the brain ventricles to allow the introduction of DNA of interest and uses a pair of electrodes to direct the entrance of the genetic material into the cells lining the ventricle, the neural stem cells. This method allows researchers to label the desired cells and/or manipulate the expression of genes of interest in those cells. It has multiple applications, including assays targeting neuronal migration, lineage tracing, and axonal pathfinding. An important feature of this method is its temporal a…
Differential expression levels of Sox9 in early neocortical radial glial cells regulate the decision between stem cell maintenance and differentiation
2021
ABSTRACTRadial glial progenitor cells (RGCs) in the dorsal forebrain directly or indirectly produce excitatory projection neurons and macroglia of the neocortex. Recent evidence shows that the pool of RGCs is more heterogeneous than originally thought and that progenitor subpopulations can generate particular neuronal cell types. Using single cell RNA sequencing, we have studied gene expression patterns of two subtypes of RGCs that differ in their neurogenic behavior. One progenitor type rapidly produces postmitotic neurons, whereas the second progenitor remains relatively quiescence before generating neurons. We have identified candidate genes that are differentially expressed between thes…
Early GABAergic circuitry in the cerebral cortex.
2013
In the cerebral cortex GABAergic signaling plays an important role in regulating early developmental processes, for example, neurogenesis, migration and differentiation. Transient cell populations, namely Cajal-Retzius in the marginal zone and thalamic input receiving subplate neurons, are integrated as active elements in transitory GABAergic circuits. Although immature pyramidal neurons receive GABAergic synaptic inputs already at fetal stages, they are integrated into functional GABAergic circuits only several days later. In consequence, GABAergic synaptic transmission has only a minor influence on spontaneous network activity during early corticogenesis. Concurrent with the gradual devel…
Cajal–Retzius and subplate cells: transient cortical neurons and circuits with long-term impact
2020
Abstract The laminar and columnar organization of the mature cerebral cortex is determined by a variety of early developmental processes. Two distinct populations of early generated neurons play important roles in corticogenesis. Cajal–Retzius neurons, located in the marginal zone (later layer 1), control the formation of neocortical layers by releasing the extracellular matrix protein reelin, which serves as a guiding signal for migrating neurons. Subplate neurons in the lower neocortical layer play an active role in axonal pathfinding of thalamocortical connections and in transient synaptic circuits, influence early cortical plasticity and the maturation of the columnar architecture. Both…
Electrical activity patterns and the functional maturation of the neocortex
2011
At the earliest developmental stages, sensory neocortical areas in various species reveal distinct patterns of spontaneous neuronal network activity. These activity patterns either propagate over large neocortical areas or synchronize local neuronal ensembles. In vitro and in vivo experiments indicate that these spontaneous activity patterns are generated from neuronal networks in the cerebral cortex, in subcortical structures or in the sensory periphery (retina, cochlea, whiskers). At early stages spontaneous periphery-driven and also sensory evoked activity is relayed to the developing cerebral cortex via the thalamus and the neocortical subplate, which amplifies the afferent sensory inpu…
Stick around: Cell-Cell Adhesion Molecules during Neocortical Development
2020
The neocortex is an exquisitely organized structure achieved through complex cellular processes from the generation of neural cells to their integration into cortical circuits after complex migration processes. During this long journey, neural cells need to stablish and release adhesive interactions through cell surface receptors known as cell adhesion molecules (CAMs). Several types of CAMs have been described regulating different aspects of neurodevelopment. Whereas some of them mediate interactions with the extracellular matrix, others allow contacts with additional cells. In this review, we will focus on the role of two important families of cell-cell adhesion molecules (C-CAMs), classi…
Can we understand human brain development from experimental studies in rodents?
2020
Animal models are needed to gain an understanding of the genetic, molecular, cellular, and network mechanisms of human brain development. In rodents, a large spectrum of in vitro and in vivo approaches allows detailed analyses and specific experimental manipulations for studying the sequence of developmental steps in corticogenesis. Neurogenesis, neuronal migration, cellular differentiation, programmed cell death, synaptogenesis, and myelination are surprisingly similar in the rodent cortex and the human cortex. Spontaneous EEG activity in the pre- and early postnatal human cortex resembles the activity patterns recorded with intracortical multi-electrode arrays in newborn rodents. This ear…
Subplate Cells: Amplifiers of Neuronal Activity in the Developing Cerebral Cortex
2009
Due to their unique structural and functional properties, subplate cells are ideally suited to function as important amplifying units within the developing neocortical circuit. Subplate neurons have extensive dendritic and axonal ramifications and relatively mature functional properties, i.e. their action potential firing can exceed frequencies of 40 Hz. At earliest stages of corticogenesis subplate cells receive functional synaptic inputs from the thalamus and from other cortical and non-cortical sources. Glutamatergic and depolarizing GABAergic inputs arise from cortical neurons and neuromodulatory inputs arise from the basal forebrain and other sources. Activation of postsynaptic metabot…