1
|
Han S, Okawa S, Wilkinson GA, Ghazale H, Adnani L, Dixit R, Tavares L, Faisal I, Brooks MJ, Cortay V, Zinyk D, Sivitilli A, Li S, Malik F, Ilnytskyy Y, Angarica VE, Gao J, Chinchalongporn V, Oproescu AM, Vasan L, Touahri Y, David LA, Raharjo E, Kim JW, Wu W, Rahmani W, Chan JAW, Kovalchuk I, Attisano L, Kurrasch D, Dehay C, Swaroop A, Castro DS, Biernaskie J, Del Sol A, Schuurmans C. Proneural genes define ground-state rules to regulate neurogenic patterning and cortical folding. Neuron 2021; 109:2847-2863.e11. [PMID: 34407390 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2020] [Revised: 05/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Asymmetric neuronal expansion is thought to drive evolutionary transitions between lissencephalic and gyrencephalic cerebral cortices. We report that Neurog2 and Ascl1 proneural genes together sustain neurogenic continuity and lissencephaly in rodent cortices. Using transgenic reporter mice and human cerebral organoids, we found that Neurog2 and Ascl1 expression defines a continuum of four lineage-biased neural progenitor cell (NPC) pools. Double+ NPCs, at the hierarchical apex, are least lineage restricted due to Neurog2-Ascl1 cross-repression and display unique features of multipotency (more open chromatin, complex gene regulatory network, G2 pausing). Strikingly, selectively eliminating double+ NPCs by crossing Neurog2-Ascl1 split-Cre mice with diphtheria toxin-dependent "deleter" strains locally disrupts Notch signaling, perturbs neurogenic symmetry, and triggers cortical folding. In support of our discovery that double+ NPCs are Notch-ligand-expressing "niche" cells that control neurogenic periodicity and cortical folding, NEUROG2, ASCL1, and HES1 transcript distribution is modular (adjacent high/low zones) in gyrencephalic macaque cortices, prefiguring future folds.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sisu Han
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Satoshi Okawa
- Computational Biology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, 4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg; Integrated BioBank of Luxembourg, 3555, 3531 Dudelange, Luxembourg
| | - Grey Atteridge Wilkinson
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Hussein Ghazale
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Lata Adnani
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Rajiv Dixit
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Ligia Tavares
- i3S-Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen, 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Imrul Faisal
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Matthew J Brooks
- Neurobiology-Neurodegeneration & Repair Laboratory, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1204, USA
| | - Veronique Cortay
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Inserm, Stem Cell and Brain Research Institute U1208, 69500 Bron, France
| | - Dawn Zinyk
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada
| | - Adam Sivitilli
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3E1, Canada
| | - Saiqun Li
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Faizan Malik
- Department of Medical Genetics, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Yaroslav Ilnytskyy
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4, Canada
| | - Vladimir Espinosa Angarica
- Computational Biology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, 4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jinghua Gao
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Vorapin Chinchalongporn
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Ana-Maria Oproescu
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Lakshmy Vasan
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Yacine Touahri
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Luke Ajay David
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada
| | - Eko Raharjo
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, HBI, ACHRI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Jung-Woong Kim
- Neurobiology-Neurodegeneration & Repair Laboratory, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1204, USA
| | - Wei Wu
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Charbonneau Cancer Institute, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada
| | - Waleed Rahmani
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, HBI, ACHRI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Jennifer Ai-Wen Chan
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Charbonneau Cancer Institute, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4Z6, Canada
| | - Igor Kovalchuk
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4, Canada
| | - Liliana Attisano
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Donnelly Centre, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 3E1, Canada
| | - Deborah Kurrasch
- Department of Medical Genetics, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Colette Dehay
- Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Inserm, Stem Cell and Brain Research Institute U1208, 69500 Bron, France
| | - Anand Swaroop
- Neurobiology-Neurodegeneration & Repair Laboratory, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892-1204, USA
| | - Diogo S Castro
- i3S-Instituto de Investigação e Inovação em Saúde, Universidade do Porto, Rua Alfredo Allen, 208, 4200-135 Porto, Portugal
| | - Jeff Biernaskie
- Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, HBI, ACHRI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Antonio Del Sol
- Computational Biology Group, Luxembourg Centre for Systems Biomedicine, University of Luxembourg, 4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg; CIC bioGUNE, Bizkaia Technology Park, 48160 Derio, Spain; IKERBASQUE, Basque Foundation for Science, Bilbao 48013, Spain
| | - Carol Schuurmans
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON M4N 3M5, Canada; Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, ACHRI, HBI, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB T2N 4N1, Canada; Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON M5S 1A8, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Oproescu AM, Han S, Schuurmans C. New Insights Into the Intricacies of Proneural Gene Regulation in the Embryonic and Adult Cerebral Cortex. Front Mol Neurosci 2021; 14:642016. [PMID: 33658912 PMCID: PMC7917194 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2021.642016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2020] [Accepted: 01/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Historically, the mammalian brain was thought to lack stem cells as no new neurons were found to be made in adulthood. That dogma changed ∼25 years ago with the identification of neural stem cells (NSCs) in the adult rodent forebrain. However, unlike rapidly self-renewing mature tissues (e.g., blood, intestinal crypts, skin), the majority of adult NSCs are quiescent, and those that become 'activated' are restricted to a few neurogenic zones that repopulate specific brain regions. Conversely, embryonic NSCs are actively proliferating and neurogenic. Investigations into the molecular control of the quiescence-to-proliferation-to-differentiation continuum in the embryonic and adult brain have identified proneural genes encoding basic-helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors (TFs) as critical regulators. These bHLH TFs initiate genetic programs that remove NSCs from quiescence and drive daughter neural progenitor cells (NPCs) to differentiate into specific neural cell subtypes, thereby contributing to the enormous cellular diversity of the adult brain. However, new insights have revealed that proneural gene activities are context-dependent and tightly regulated. Here we review how proneural bHLH TFs are regulated, with a focus on the murine cerebral cortex, drawing parallels where appropriate to other organisms and neural tissues. We discuss upstream regulatory events, post-translational modifications (phosphorylation, ubiquitinylation), protein-protein interactions, epigenetic and metabolic mechanisms that govern bHLH TF expression, stability, localization, and consequent transactivation of downstream target genes. These tight regulatory controls help to explain paradoxical findings of changes to bHLH activity in different cellular contexts.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ana-Maria Oproescu
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, Biological Sciences Platform, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sisu Han
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, Biological Sciences Platform, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Carol Schuurmans
- Sunnybrook Research Institute, Biological Sciences Platform, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| |
Collapse
|