Neuronal Polarity in the Embryonic Mammalian Cerebral Cortex

The cerebral cortex is composed of billions of neurons that can grossly be subdivided into two broad classes: inhibitory GABAergic interneurons and excitatory glutamatergic neurons. The majority of cortical neurons in mammals are the excitatory type and they are the main focus of this review article. Like many of the cells in multicellular organisms, fully differentiated neurons are both morphologically and functionally polarized. However, they go through several changes in polarity before reaching this final mature differentiated state. Neurons are derived from polarized neuronal progenitor/stem cells and their commitment to neuronal fate is decided by cellular and molecular asymmetry during their last division in the neurogenic zone. They migrate from their birthplace using so-called multipolar migration, during which they switch direction of movement several times, and repolarize for bipolar migration when the axon is specified. Therefore, neurons have to break their previous symmetry, change their morphology and adequately respond to polarizing signals during migration in order to reach the correct position in the cortex and start making connections. Finally, the dendritic tree is elaborated and the axon/dendrite morphological polarity is set. Here we will describe the function, establishment and maintenance of polarity during the different developmental steps starting from neural stem cell (NSC) division, neuronal migration and axon specification at embryonic developmental stages.

Molecules and mechanisms that regulate multipolar migration in the intermediate zone

Most neurons migrate with an elongated, “bipolar” morphology, extending a long leading process that explores the environment. However, when immature projection neurons enter the intermediate zone (IZ) of the neocortex they become “multipolar”. Multipolar cells extend and retract cytoplasmic processes in different directions and move erratically—sideways, up and down. Multipolar cells extend axons while they are in the lower half of the IZ. Remarkably, the cells then resume radial migration: they reorient their centrosome and Golgi apparatus towards the pia, transform back to bipolar morphology, and commence locomotion along radial glia (RG) fibers. This reorientation implies the existence of directional signals in the IZ that are ignored during the multipolar stage but sensed after axonogenesis. In vivo genetic manipulation has implicated a variety of candidate directional signals, cell surface receptors, and signaling pathways, that may be involved in polarizing multipolar cells and stabilizing a pia-directed leading process for radial migration. Other signals are implicated in starting multipolar migration and triggering axon outgrowth. Here we review the molecules and mechanisms that regulate multipolar migration, and also discuss how multipolar migration affects the orderly arrangement of neurons in layers and columns in the developing neocortex.