Proneural proteins and the development of the cerebral cortex

Abstract

Proneural transcription factors are key regulators of neurogenesis. This chapter focuses on the proneural proteins Ascl1, Neurog1 and Neurog2 and their multiple roles in development of the mammalian cerebral cortex. The fi rst part of the chapter considers the different aspects of telencephalic development that are regulated by proneural proteins, including the neuronal versus glial fate decision, the specifi cation of glutamatergic and GABAergic neuronal phenotypes, and the radial migration, dendritic morphogenesis and axonal projection patterning of cortical neurons. The second part turns to the molecular mechanisms through which proneural proteins exert their activities and discusses the regulation of their expression and activity, the identifi cation of the many genes they regulate and fi nally the nature of the transcription factors and cofactors that they interact with to regulate gene expression. Together, this chapter illustrates how studies focused on the functions and modes of action of a small group of proteins have greatly improved our general understanding of cortical development.