TY - JOUR AB - Development of the nervous system undergoes important transitions, including one from neurogenesis to gliogenesis which occurs late during embryonic gestation. Here we report on clonal analysis of gliogenesis in mice using Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers (MADM) with quantitative and computational methods. Results reveal that developmental gliogenesis in the cerebral cortex occurs in a fraction of earlier neurogenic clones, accelerating around E16.5, and giving rise to both astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Moreover, MADM-based genetic deletion of the epidermal growth factor receptor (Egfr) in gliogenic clones revealed that Egfr is cell autonomously required for gliogenesis in the mouse dorsolateral cortices. A broad range in the proliferation capacity, symmetry of clones, and competitive advantage of MADM cells was evident in clones that contained one cellular lineage with double dosage of Egfr relative to their environment, while their sibling Egfr-null cells failed to generate glia. Remarkably, the total numbers of glia in MADM clones balance out regardless of significant alterations in clonal symmetries. The variability in glial clones shows stochastic patterns that we define mathematically, which are different from the deterministic patterns in neuronal clones. This study sets a foundation for studying the biological significance of stochastic and deterministic clonal principles underlying tissue development, and identifying mechanisms that differentiate between neurogenesis and gliogenesis. AU - Zhang, Xuying AU - Mennicke, Christine V. AU - Xiao, Guanxi AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Haider, Mansoor AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Ghashghaei, H. Troy ID - 8949 IS - 12 JF - Cells SN - 2073-4409 TI - Clonal analysis of gliogenesis in the cerebral cortex reveals stochastic expansion of glia and cell autonomous responses to Egfr dosage VL - 9 ER - TY - GEN AB - In mammals, chromatin marks at imprinted genes are asymmetrically inherited to control parentally-biased gene expression. This control is thought predominantly to involve parent-specific differentially methylated regions (DMR) in genomic DNA. However, neither parent-of-origin-specific transcription nor DMRs have been comprehensively mapped. We here address this by integrating transcriptomic and epigenomic approaches in mouse preimplantation embryos (blastocysts). Transcriptome-analysis identified 71 genes expressed with previously unknown parent-of-origin-specific expression in blastocysts (nBiX: novel blastocyst-imprinted expression). Uniparental expression of nBiX genes disappeared soon after implantation. Micro-whole-genome bisulfite sequencing (μWGBS) of individual uniparental blastocysts detected 859 DMRs. Only 18% of nBiXs were associated with a DMR, whereas 60% were associated with parentally-biased H3K27me3. This suggests a major role for Polycomb-mediated imprinting in blastocysts. Five nBiX-clusters contained at least one known imprinted gene, and five novel clusters contained exclusively nBiX-genes. These data suggest a complex program of stage-specific imprinting involving different tiers of regulation. AU - Santini, Laura AU - Halbritter, Florian AU - Titz-Teixeira, Fabian AU - Suzuki, Toru AU - Asami, Maki AU - Ramesmayer, Julia AU - Ma, Xiaoyan AU - Lackner, Andreas AU - Warr, Nick AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Laue, Ernest AU - Farlik, Matthias AU - Bock, Christoph AU - Beyer, Andreas AU - Perry, Anthony C. F. AU - Leeb, Martin ID - 8813 T2 - bioRxiv TI - Novel imprints in mouse blastocysts are predominantly DNA methylation independent ER - TY - JOUR AB - Concerted radial migration of newly born cortical projection neurons, from their birthplace to their final target lamina, is a key step in the assembly of the cerebral cortex. The cellular and molecular mechanisms regulating the specific sequential steps of radial neuronal migration in vivo are however still unclear, let alone the effects and interactions with the extracellular environment. In any in vivo context, cells will always be exposed to a complex extracellular environment consisting of (1) secreted factors acting as potential signaling cues, (2) the extracellular matrix, and (3) other cells providing cell–cell interaction through receptors and/or direct physical stimuli. Most studies so far have described and focused mainly on intrinsic cell-autonomous gene functions in neuronal migration but there is accumulating evidence that non-cell-autonomous-, local-, systemic-, and/or whole tissue-wide effects substantially contribute to the regulation of radial neuronal migration. These non-cell-autonomous effects may differentially affect cortical neuron migration in distinct cellular environments. However, the cellular and molecular natures of such non-cell-autonomous mechanisms are mostly unknown. Furthermore, physical forces due to collective migration and/or community effects (i.e., interactions with surrounding cells) may play important roles in neocortical projection neuron migration. In this concise review, we first outline distinct models of non-cell-autonomous interactions of cortical projection neurons along their radial migration trajectory during development. We then summarize experimental assays and platforms that can be utilized to visualize and potentially probe non-cell-autonomous mechanisms. Lastly, we define key questions to address in the future. AU - Hansen, Andi H AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 8569 IS - 9 JF - Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology SN - 2296-634X TI - Non-cell-autonomous mechanisms in radial projection neuron migration in the developing cerebral cortex VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Beginning from a limited pool of progenitors, the mammalian cerebral cortex forms highly organized functional neural circuits. However, the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms regulating lineage transitions of neural stem cells (NSCs) and eventual production of neurons and glia in the developing neuroepithelium remains unclear. Methods to trace NSC division patterns and map the lineage of clonally related cells have advanced dramatically. However, many contemporary lineage tracing techniques suffer from the lack of cellular resolution of progeny cell fate, which is essential for deciphering progenitor cell division patterns. Presented is a protocol using mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM) to perform in vivo clonal analysis. MADM concomitantly manipulates individual progenitor cells and visualizes precise division patterns and lineage progression at unprecedented single cell resolution. MADM-based interchromosomal recombination events during the G2-X phase of mitosis, together with temporally inducible CreERT2, provide exact information on the birth dates of clones and their division patterns. Thus, MADM lineage tracing provides unprecedented qualitative and quantitative optical readouts of the proliferation mode of stem cell progenitors at the single cell level. MADM also allows for examination of the mechanisms and functional requirements of candidate genes in NSC lineage progression. This method is unique in that comparative analysis of control and mutant subclones can be performed in the same tissue environment in vivo. Here, the protocol is described in detail, and experimental paradigms to employ MADM for clonal analysis and lineage tracing in the developing cerebral cortex are demonstrated. Importantly, this protocol can be adapted to perform MADM clonal analysis in any murine stem cell niche, as long as the CreERT2 driver is present. AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Amberg, Nicole AU - Cheung, Giselle T AU - Contreras, Ximena AU - Hansen, Andi H AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 7815 IS - 159 JF - Journal of Visual Experiments SN - 1940-087X TI - Lineage tracing and clonal analysis in developing cerebral cortex using mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM) ER - TY - THES AB - Mosaic genetic analysis has been widely used in different model organisms such as the fruit fly to study gene-function in a cell-autonomous or tissue-specific fashion. More recently, and less easily conducted, mosaic genetic analysis in mice has also been enabled with the ambition to shed light on human gene function and disease. These genetic tools are of particular interest, but not restricted to, the study of the brain. Notably, the MADM technology offers a genetic approach in mice to visualize and concomitantly manipulate small subsets of genetically defined cells at a clonal level and single cell resolution. MADM-based analysis has already advanced the study of genetic mechanisms regulating brain development and is expected that further MADM-based analysis of genetic alterations will continue to reveal important insights on the fundamental principles of development and disease to potentially assist in the development of new therapies or treatments. In summary, this work completed and characterized the necessary genome-wide genetic tools to perform MADM-based analysis at single cell level of the vast majority of mouse genes in virtually any cell type and provided a protocol to perform lineage tracing using the novel MADM resource. Importantly, this work also explored and revealed novel aspects of biologically relevant events in an in vivo context, such as the chromosome-specific bias of chromatid sister segregation pattern, the generation of cell-type diversity in the cerebral cortex and in the cerebellum and finally, the relevance of the interplay between the cell-autonomous gene function and cell-non-autonomous (community) effects in radial glial progenitor lineage progression. This work provides a foundation and opens the door to further elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying neuronal diversity and astrocyte generation. AU - Contreras, Ximena ID - 7902 SN - 2663-337X TI - Genetic dissection of neural development in health and disease at single cell resolution ER - TY - JOUR AB - Cortical networks are characterized by sparse connectivity, with synapses found at only a subset of axo-dendritic contacts. Yet within these networks, neurons can exhibit high connection probabilities, suggesting that cell-intrinsic factors, not proximity, determine connectivity. Here, we identify ephrin-B3 (eB3) as a factor that determines synapse density by mediating a cell-cell competition that requires ephrin-B-EphB signaling. In a microisland culture system designed to isolate cell-cell competition, we find that eB3 determines winning and losing neurons in a contest for synapses. In a Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers (MADM) genetic mouse model system in vivo the relative levels of eB3 control spine density in layer 5 and 6 neurons. MADM cortical neurons in vitro reveal that eB3 controls synapse density independently of action potential-driven activity. Our findings illustrate a new class of competitive mechanism mediated by trans-synaptic organizing proteins which control the number of synapses neurons receive relative to neighboring neurons. AU - Henderson, Nathan T. AU - Le Marchand, Sylvain J. AU - Hruska, Martin AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Luo, Liqun AU - Dalva, Matthew B. ID - 6091 JF - eLife TI - Ephrin-B3 controls excitatory synapse density through cell-cell competition for EphBs VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Studying the progression of the proliferative and differentiative patterns of neural stem cells at the individual cell level is crucial to the understanding of cortex development and how the disruption of such patterns can lead to malformations and neurodevelopmental diseases. However, our understanding of the precise lineage progression programme at single-cell resolution is still incomplete due to the technical variations in lineage- tracing approaches. One of the key challenges involves developing a robust theoretical framework in which we can integrate experimental observations and introduce correction factors to obtain a reliable and representative description of the temporal modulation of proliferation and differentiation. In order to obtain more conclusive insights, we carry out virtual clonal analysis using mathematical modelling and compare our results against experimental data. Using a dataset obtained with Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers, we illustrate how the theoretical description can be exploited to interpret and reconcile the disparity between virtual and experimental results. AU - Picco, Noemi AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Rodarte, Julio AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Molnár, Zoltán AU - Maini, Philip K. AU - Woolley, Thomas E. ID - 6844 IS - 3 JF - Journal of Anatomy SN - 0021-8782 TI - A mathematical insight into cell labelling experiments for clonal analysis VL - 235 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Activity-dependent bulk endocytosis generates synaptic vesicles (SVs) during intense neuronal activity via a two-step process. First, bulk endosomes are formed direct from the plasma membrane from which SVs are then generated. SV generation from bulk endosomes requires the efflux of previously accumulated calcium and activation of the protein phosphatase calcineurin. However, it is still unknown how calcineurin mediates SV generation. We addressed this question using a series of acute interventions that decoupled the generation of SVs from bulk endosomes in rat primary neuronal culture. This was achieved by either disruption of protein–protein interactions via delivery of competitive peptides, or inhibition of enzyme activity by known inhibitors. SV generation was monitored using either a morphological horseradish peroxidase assay or an optical assay that monitors the replenishment of the reserve SV pool. We found that SV generation was inhibited by, (i) peptides that disrupt calcineurin interactions, (ii) an inhibitor of dynamin I GTPase activity and (iii) peptides that disrupt the phosphorylation-dependent dynamin I–syndapin I interaction. Peptides that disrupted syndapin I interactions with eps15 homology domain-containing proteins had no effect. This revealed that (i) calcineurin must be localized at bulk endosomes to mediate its effect, (ii) dynamin I GTPase activity is essential for SV fission and (iii) the calcineurin-dependent interaction between dynamin I and syndapin I is essential for SV generation. We therefore propose that a calcineurin-dependent dephosphorylation cascade that requires both dynamin I GTPase and syndapin I lipid-deforming activity is essential for SV generation from bulk endosomes. AU - Cheung, Giselle T AU - Cousin, Michael A. ID - 7005 IS - 5 JF - Journal of Neurochemistry SN - 0022-3042 TI - Synaptic vesicle generation from activity‐dependent bulk endosomes requires a dephosphorylation‐dependent dynamin–syndapin interaction VL - 151 ER - TY - JOUR AB - During corticogenesis, distinct subtypes of neurons are sequentially born from ventricular zone progenitors. How these cells are molecularly temporally patterned is poorly understood. We used single-cell RNA sequencing at high temporal resolution to trace the lineage of the molecular identities of successive generations of apical progenitors (APs) and their daughter neurons in mouse embryos. We identified a core set of evolutionarily conserved, temporally patterned genes that drive APs from internally driven to more exteroceptive states. We found that the Polycomb repressor complex 2 (PRC2) epigenetically regulates AP temporal progression. Embryonic age–dependent AP molecular states are transmitted to their progeny as successive ground states, onto which essentially conserved early postmitotic differentiation programs are applied, and are complemented by later-occurring environment-dependent signals. Thus, epigenetically regulated temporal molecular birthmarks present in progenitors act in their postmitotic progeny to seed adult neuronal diversity. AU - Telley, L AU - Agirman, G AU - Prados, J AU - Amberg, Nicole AU - Fièvre, S AU - Oberst, P AU - Bartolini, G AU - Vitali, I AU - Cadilhac, C AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Nguyen, L AU - Dayer, A AU - Jabaudon, D ID - 6455 IS - 6440 JF - Science SN - 0036-8075 TI - Temporal patterning of apical progenitors and their daughter neurons in the developing neocortex VL - 364 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Adult neural stem cells and multiciliated ependymalcells are glial cells essential for neurological func-tions. Together, they make up the adult neurogenicniche. Using both high-throughput clonal analysisand single-cell resolution of progenitor division pat-terns and fate, we show that these two componentsof the neurogenic niche are lineally related: adult neu-ral stem cells are sister cells to ependymal cells,whereas most ependymal cells arise from the termi-nal symmetric divisions of the lineage. Unexpectedly,we found that the antagonist regulators of DNA repli-cation, GemC1 and Geminin, can tune the proportionof neural stem cells and ependymal cells. Our find-ings reveal the controlled dynamic of the neurogenicniche ontogeny and identify the Geminin familymembers as key regulators of the initial pool of adultneural stem cells. AU - Ortiz-Álvarez, G AU - Daclin, M AU - Shihavuddin, A AU - Lansade, P AU - Fortoul, A AU - Faucourt, M AU - Clavreul, S AU - Lalioti, ME AU - Taraviras, S AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Livet, J AU - Meunier, A AU - Genovesio, A AU - Spassky, N ID - 6454 IS - 1 JF - Neuron SN - 0896-6273 TI - Adult neural stem cells and multiciliated ependymal cells share a common lineage regulated by the Geminin family members VL - 102 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The cerebral cortex contains multiple areas with distinctive cytoarchitectonical patterns, but the cellular mechanisms underlying the emergence of this diversity remain unclear. Here, we have investigated the neuronal output of individual progenitor cells in the developing mouse neocortex using a combination of methods that together circumvent the biases and limitations of individual approaches. Our experimental results indicate that progenitor cells generate pyramidal cell lineages with a wide range of sizes and laminar configurations. Mathematical modelling indicates that these outcomes are compatible with a stochastic model of cortical neurogenesis in which progenitor cells undergo a series of probabilistic decisions that lead to the specification of very heterogeneous progenies. Our findings support a mechanism for cortical neurogenesis whose flexibility would make it capable to generate the diverse cytoarchitectures that characterize distinct neocortical areas. AU - Llorca, Alfredo AU - Ciceri, Gabriele AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Wong, Fong Kuan AU - Diana, Giovanni AU - Serafeimidou-Pouliou, Eleni AU - Fernández-Otero, Marian AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Arnold, Sebastian J. AU - Meyer, Martin AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Maravall, Miguel AU - Marín, Oscar ID - 7202 JF - eLife TI - A stochastic framework of neurogenesis underlies the assembly of neocortical cytoarchitecture VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) signaling controls skin development and homeostasis inmice and humans, and its deficiency causes severe skin inflammation, which might affect epidermalstem cell behavior. Here, we describe the inflammation-independent effects of EGFR deficiency dur-ing skin morphogenesis and in adult hair follicle stem cells. Expression and alternative splicing analysisof RNA sequencing data from interfollicular epidermis and outer root sheath indicate that EGFR con-trols genes involved in epidermal differentiation and also in centrosome function, DNA damage, cellcycle, and apoptosis. Genetic experiments employingp53deletion in EGFR-deficient epidermis revealthat EGFR signaling exhibitsp53-dependent functions in proliferative epidermal compartments, aswell asp53-independent functions in differentiated hair shaft keratinocytes. Loss of EGFR leads toabsence of LEF1 protein specifically in the innermost epithelial hair layers, resulting in disorganizationof medulla cells. Thus, our results uncover important spatial and temporal features of cell-autonomousEGFR functions in the epidermis. AU - Amberg, Nicole AU - Sotiropoulou, Panagiota A. AU - Heller, Gerwin AU - Lichtenberger, Beate M. AU - Holcmann, Martin AU - Camurdanoglu, Bahar AU - Baykuscheva-Gentscheva, Temenuschka AU - Blanpain, Cedric AU - Sibilia, Maria ID - 6451 JF - iScience SN - 2589-0042 TI - EGFR controls hair shaft differentiation in a p53-independent manner VL - 15 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The cerebral cortex is composed of a large variety of distinct cell-types including projection neurons, interneurons and glial cells which emerge from distinct neural stem cell (NSC) lineages. The vast majority of cortical projection neurons and certain classes of glial cells are generated by radial glial progenitor cells (RGPs) in a highly orchestrated manner. Recent studies employing single cell analysis and clonal lineage tracing suggest that NSC and RGP lineage progression are regulated in a profound deterministic manner. In this review we focus on recent advances based mainly on correlative phenotypic data emerging from functional genetic studies in mice. We establish hypotheses to test in future research and outline a conceptual framework how epigenetic cues modulate the generation of cell-type diversity during cortical development. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. AU - Amberg, Nicole AU - Laukoter, Susanne AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 27 IS - 1 JF - Journal of Neurochemistry TI - Epigenetic cues modulating the generation of cell type diversity in the cerebral cortex VL - 149 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Long non-coding (lnc) RNAs are numerous and found throughout the mammalian genome, and many are thought to be involved in the regulation of gene expression. However, the majority remain relatively uncharacterised and of uncertain function making the use of model systems to uncover their mode of action valuable. Imprinted lncRNAs target and recruit epigenetic silencing factors to a cluster of imprinted genes on the same chromosome, making them one of the best characterized lncRNAs for silencing distant genes in cis. In this study we examined silencing of the distant imprinted gene Slc22a3 by the lncRNA Airn in the Igf2r imprinted cluster in mouse. Previously we proposed that imprinted lncRNAs may silence distant imprinted genes by disrupting promoter-enhancer interactions by being transcribed through the enhancer, which we called the enhancer interference hypothesis. Here we tested this hypothesis by first using allele-specific chromosome conformation capture (3C) to detect interactions between the Slc22a3 promoter and the locus of the Airn lncRNA that silences it on the paternal chromosome. In agreement with the model, we found interactions enriched on the maternal allele across the entire Airn gene consistent with multiple enhancer-promoter interactions. Therefore, to test the enhancer interference hypothesis we devised an approach to delete the entire Airn gene. However, the deletion showed that there are no essential enhancers for Slc22a2, Pde10a and Slc22a3 within the Airn gene, strongly indicating that the Airn RNA rather than its transcription is responsible for silencing distant imprinted genes. Furthermore, we found that silent imprinted genes were covered with large blocks of H3K27me3 on the repressed paternal allele. Therefore we propose an alternative hypothesis whereby the chromosome interactions may initially guide the lncRNA to target imprinted promoters and recruit repressive chromatin, and that these interactions are lost once silencing is established. AU - Andergassen, Daniel AU - Muckenhuber, Markus AU - Bammer, Philipp C. AU - Kulinski, Tomasz M. AU - Theussl, Hans-Christian AU - Shimizu, Takahiko AU - Penninger, Josef M. AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Hudson, Quanah J. ID - 7399 IS - 7 JF - PLoS Genetics SN - 1553-7404 TI - The Airn lncRNA does not require any DNA elements within its locus to silence distant imprinted genes VL - 15 ER - TY - JOUR AU - Contreras, Ximena AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 6830 IS - 5 JF - Neuron SN - 08966273 TI - Memo1 tiles the radial glial cell grid VL - 103 ER - TY - GEN AB - The cerebral cortex contains multiple hierarchically organized areas with distinctive cytoarchitectonical patterns, but the cellular mechanisms underlying the emergence of this diversity remain unclear. Here, we have quantitatively investigated the neuronal output of individual progenitor cells in the ventricular zone of the developing mouse neocortex using a combination of methods that together circumvent the biases and limitations of individual approaches. We found that individual cortical progenitor cells show a high degree of stochasticity and generate pyramidal cell lineages that adopt a wide range of laminar configurations. Mathematical modelling these lineage data suggests that a small number of progenitor cell populations, each generating pyramidal cells following different stochastic developmental programs, suffice to generate the heterogenous complement of pyramidal cell lineages that collectively build the complex cytoarchitecture of the neocortex. AU - Llorca, Alfredo AU - Ciceri, Gabriele AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Wong, Fong K. AU - Diana, Giovanni AU - Serafeimidou, Eleni AU - Fernández-Otero, Marian AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Arnold, Sebastian J. AU - Meyer, Martin AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Maravall, Miguel AU - Marín, Oscar ID - 8547 T2 - bioRxiv TI - Heterogeneous progenitor cell behaviors underlie the assembly of neocortical cytoarchitecture ER - TY - JOUR AB - Background: Norepinephrine (NE) signaling has a key role in white adipose tissue (WAT) functions, including lipolysis, free fatty acid liberation and, under certain conditions, conversion of white into brite (brown-in-white) adipocytes. However, acute effects of NE stimulation have not been described at the transcriptional network level. Results: We used RNA-seq to uncover a broad transcriptional response. The inference of protein-protein and protein-DNA interaction networks allowed us to identify a set of immediate-early genes (IEGs) with high betweenness, validating our approach and suggesting a hierarchical control of transcriptional regulation. In addition, we identified a transcriptional regulatory network with IEGs as master regulators, including HSF1 and NFIL3 as novel NE-induced IEG candidates. Moreover, a functional enrichment analysis and gene clustering into functional modules suggest a crosstalk between metabolic, signaling, and immune responses. Conclusions: Altogether, our network biology approach explores for the first time the immediate-early systems level response of human adipocytes to acute sympathetic activation, thereby providing a first network basis of early cell fate programs and crosstalks between metabolic and transcriptional networks required for proper WAT function. AU - Higareda Almaraz, Juan AU - Karbiener, Michael AU - Giroud, Maude AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Gerhalter, Teresa AU - Herzig, Stephan AU - Scheideler, Marcel ID - 20 IS - 1 JF - BMC Genomics SN - 1471-2164 TI - Norepinephrine triggers an immediate-early regulatory network response in primary human white adipocytes VL - 19 ER - TY - GEN AB - Table S1. Genes with highest betweenness. Table S2. Local and Master regulators up-regulated. Table S3. Local and Master regulators down-regulated (XLSX 23 kb). AU - Higareda Almaraz, Juan AU - Karbiener, Michael AU - Giroud, Maude AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Gerhalter, Teresa AU - Herzig, Stephan AU - Scheideler, Marcel ID - 9807 TI - Additional file 1: Of Norepinephrine triggers an immediate-early regulatory network response in primary human white adipocytes ER - TY - GEN AB - Table S4. Counts per Gene per Million Reads Mapped. (XLSX 2751 kb). AU - Higareda Almaraz, Juan AU - Karbiener, Michael AU - Giroud, Maude AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Gerhalter, Teresa AU - Herzig, Stephan AU - Scheideler, Marcel ID - 9808 TI - Additional file 3: Of Norepinephrine triggers an immediate-early regulatory network response in primary human white adipocytes ER - TY - THES AB - Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic process that leads to parent of origin-specific gene expression in a subset of genes. Imprinted genes are essential for brain development, and deregulation of imprinting is associated with neurodevelopmental diseases and the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders. However, the cell-type specificity of imprinting at single cell resolution, and how imprinting and thus gene dosage regulates neuronal circuit assembly is still largely unknown. Here, MADM (Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers) technology was employed to assess genomic imprinting at single cell level. By visualizing MADM-induced uniparental disomies (UPDs) in distinct colors at single cell level in genetic mosaic animals, this experimental paradigm provides a unique quantitative platform to systematically assay the UPD-mediated imbalances in imprinted gene expression at unprecedented resolution. An experimental pipeline based on FACS, RNA-seq and bioinformatics analysis was established and applied to systematically map cell-type-specific ‘imprintomes’ in the mouse brain. The results revealed that parental-specific expression of imprinted genes per se is rarely cell-type-specific even at the individual cell level. Conversely, when we extended the comparison to downstream responses resulting from imbalanced imprinted gene expression, we discovered an unexpectedly high degree of cell-type specificity. Furthermore, we determined a novel function of genomic imprinting in cortical astrocyte production and in olfactory bulb (OB) granule cell generation. These results suggest important functional implication of genomic imprinting for generating cell-type diversity in the brain. In addition, MADM provides a powerful tool to study candidate genes by concomitant genetic manipulation and fluorescent labelling of single cells. MADM-based candidate gene approach was utilized to identify potential imprinted genes involved in the generation of cortical astrocytes and OB granule cells. We investigated p57Kip2, a maternally expressed gene and known cell cycle regulator. Although we found that p57Kip2 does not play a role in these processes, we detected an unexpected function of the paternal allele previously thought to be silent. Finally, we took advantage of a key property of MADM which is to allow unambiguous investigation of environmental impact on single cells. The experimental pipeline based on FACS and RNA-seq analysis of MADM-labeled cells was established to probe the functional differences of single cell loss of gene function compared to global loss of function on a transcriptional level. With this method, both common and distinct responses were isolated due to cell-autonomous and non-autonomous effects acting on genotypically identical cells. As a result, transcriptional changes were identified which result solely from the surrounding environment. Using the MADM technology to study genomic imprinting at single cell resolution, we have identified cell-type-specific gene expression, novel gene function and the impact of environment on single cell transcriptomes. Together, these provide important insights to the understanding of mechanisms regulating cell-type specificity and thus diversity in the brain. AU - Laukoter, Susanne ID - 10 SN - 2663-337X TI - Role of genomic imprinting in cerebral cortex development ER - TY - JOUR AB - This scientific commentary refers to ‘NEGR1 and FGFR2 cooperatively regulate cortical development and core behaviours related to autism disorders in mice’ by Szczurkowska et al. AU - Contreras, Ximena AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 28 IS - 9 JF - Brain a journal of neurology TI - Incorrect trafficking route leads to autism VL - 141 ER - TY - JOUR AB - To determine the dynamics of allelic-specific expression during mouse development, we analyzed RNA-seq data from 23 F1 tissues from different developmental stages, including 19 female tissues allowing X chromosome inactivation (XCI) escapers to also be detected. We demonstrate that allelic expression arising from genetic or epigenetic differences is highly tissue-specific. We find that tissue-specific strain-biased gene expression may be regulated by tissue-specific enhancers or by post-transcriptional differences in stability between the alleles. We also find that escape from X-inactivation is tissue-specific, with leg muscle showing an unexpectedly high rate of XCI escapers. By surveying a range of tissues during development, and performing extensive validation, we are able to provide a high confidence list of mouse imprinted genes including 18 novel genes. This shows that cluster size varies dynamically during development and can be substantially larger than previously thought, with the Igf2r cluster extending over 10 Mb in placenta. AU - Andergassen, Daniel AU - Dotter, Christoph AU - Wenzel, Dyniel AU - Sigl, Verena AU - Bammer, Philipp AU - Muckenhuber, Markus AU - Mayer, Daniela AU - Kulinski, Tomasz AU - Theussl, Hans AU - Penninger, Josef AU - Bock, Christoph AU - Barlow, Denise AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Hudson, Quanah ID - 713 JF - eLife SN - 2050084X TI - Mapping the mouse Allelome reveals tissue specific regulation of allelic expression VL - 6 ER - TY - GEN AB - Branching morphogenesis of the epithelial ureteric bud forms the renal collecting duct system and is critical for normal nephron number, while low nephron number is implicated in hypertension and renal disease. Ureteric bud growth and branching requires GDNF signaling from the surrounding mesenchyme to cells at the ureteric bud tips, via the Ret receptor tyrosine kinase and coreceptor Gfrα1; Ret signaling up-regulates transcription factors Etv4 and Etv5, which are also critical for branching. Despite extensive knowledge of the genetic control of these events, it is not understood, at the cellular level, how renal branching morphogenesis is achieved or how Ret signaling influences epithelial cell behaviors to promote this process. Analysis of chimeric embryos previously suggested a role for Ret signaling in promoting cell rearrangements in the nephric duct, but this method was unsuited to study individual cell behaviors during ureteric bud branching. Here, we use Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers (MADM), combined with organ culture and time-lapse imaging, to trace the movements and divisions of individual ureteric bud tip cells. We first examine wild-type clones and then Ret or Etv4 mutant/wild-type clones in which the mutant and wild-type sister cells are differentially and heritably marked by green and red fluorescent proteins. We find that, in normal kidneys, most individual tip cells behave as self-renewing progenitors, some of whose progeny remain at the tips while others populate the growing UB trunks. In Ret or Etv4 MADM clones, the wild-type cells generated at a UB tip are much more likely to remain at, or move to, the new tips during branching and elongation, while their Ret−/− or Etv4−/− sister cells tend to lag behind and contribute only to the trunks. By tracking successive mitoses in a cell lineage, we find that Ret signaling has little effect on proliferation, in contrast to its effects on cell movement. Our results show that Ret/Etv4 signaling promotes directed cell movements in the ureteric bud tips, and suggest a model in which these cell movements mediate branching morphogenesis. AU - Riccio, Paul AU - Cebrián, Christina AU - Zong, Hui AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Costantini, Frank ID - 9707 TI - Data from: Ret and Etv4 promote directed movements of progenitor cells during renal branching morphogenesis ER - TY - JOUR AB - The development of the vertebrate central nervous system is reliant on a complex cascade of biological processes that include mitotic division, relocation of migrating neurons, and the extension of dendritic and axonal processes. Each of these cellular events requires the diverse functional repertoire of the microtubule cytoskeleton for the generation of forces, assembly of macromolecular complexes and transport of molecules and organelles. The tubulins are a multi-gene family that encode for the constituents of microtubules, and have been implicated in a spectrum of neurological disorders. Evidence is building that different tubulins tune the functional properties of the microtubule cytoskeleton dependent on the cell type, developmental profile and subcellular localisation. Here we review of the origins of the functional specification of the tubulin gene family in the developing brain at a transcriptional, translational, and post-transcriptional level. We remind the reader that tubulins are not just loading controls for your average Western blot. AU - Breuss, Martin AU - Leca, Ines AU - Gstrein, Thomas AU - Hansen, Andi H AU - Keays, David ID - 1017 JF - Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience SN - 10447431 TI - Tubulins and brain development: The origins of functional specification VL - 84 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The integrity and dynamic properties of the microtubule cytoskeleton are indispensable for the development of the mammalian brain. Consequently, mutations in the genes that encode the structural component (the α/β-tubulin heterodimer) can give rise to severe, sporadic neurodevelopmental disorders. These are commonly referred to as the tubulinopathies. Here we report the addition of recessive quadrupedalism, also known as Uner Tan syndrome (UTS), to the growing list of diseases caused by tubulin variants. Analysis of a consanguineous UTS family identified a biallelic TUBB2B mutation, resulting in a p.R390Q amino acid substitution. In addition to the identifying quadrupedal locomotion, all three patients showed severe cerebellar hypoplasia. None, however, displayed the basal ganglia malformations typically associated with TUBB2B mutations. Functional analysis of the R390Q substitution revealed that it did not affect the ability of β-tubulin to fold or become assembled into the α/β-heterodimer, nor did it influence the incorporation of mutant-containing heterodimers into microtubule polymers. The 390Q mutation in S. cerevisiae TUB2 did not affect growth under basal conditions, but did result in increased sensitivity to microtubule-depolymerizing drugs, indicative of a mild impact of this mutation on microtubule function. The TUBB2B mutation described here represents an unusual recessive mode of inheritance for missense-mediated tubulinopathies and reinforces the sensitivity of the developing cerebellum to microtubule defects. AU - Breuss, Martin AU - Nguyen, Thai AU - Srivatsan, Anjana AU - Leca, Ines AU - Tian, Guoling AU - Fritz, Tanja AU - Hansen, Andi H AU - Musaev, Damir AU - Mcevoy Venneri, Jennifer AU - Kiely, James AU - Rosti, Rasim AU - Scott, Eric AU - Tan, Uner AU - Kolodner, Richard AU - Cowan, Nicholas AU - Keays, David AU - Gleeson, Joseph ID - 1016 IS - 2 JF - Human Molecular Genetics SN - 09646906 TI - Uner Tan syndrome caused by a homozygous TUBB2B mutation affecting microtubule stability VL - 26 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The concerted production of neurons and glia by neural stem cells (NSCs) is essential for neural circuit assembly. In the developing cerebral cortex, radial glia progenitors (RGPs) generate nearly all neocortical neurons and certain glia lineages. RGP proliferation behavior shows a high degree of non-stochasticity, thus a deterministic characteristic of neuron and glia production. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms controlling RGP behavior and proliferation dynamics in neurogenesis and glia generation remain unknown. By using mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM)-based genetic paradigms enabling the sparse and global knockout with unprecedented single-cell resolution, we identified Lgl1 as a critical regulatory component. We uncover Lgl1-dependent tissue-wide community effects required for embryonic cortical neurogenesis and novel cell-autonomous Lgl1 functions controlling RGP-mediated glia genesis and postnatal NSC behavior. These results suggest that NSC-mediated neuron and glia production is tightly regulated through the concerted interplay of sequential Lgl1-dependent global and cell intrinsic mechanisms. AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Postiglione, Maria P AU - Burnett, Laura AU - Laukoter, Susanne AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Pauler, Florian AU - Xiao, Guanxi AU - Klezovitch, Olga AU - Vasioukhin, Valeri AU - Ghashghaei, Troy AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 944 IS - 3 JF - Neuron SN - 08966273 TI - Mosaic analysis with double markers reveals distinct sequential functions of Lgl1 in neural stem cells VL - 94 ER - TY - JOUR AB - During corticogenesis, distinct classes of neurons are born from progenitor cells located in the ventricular and subventricular zones, from where they migrate towards the pial surface to assemble into highly organized layer-specific circuits. However, the precise and coordinated transcriptional network activity defining neuronal identity is still not understood. Here, we show that genetic depletion of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factor E2A splice variant E47 increased the number of Tbr1-positive deep layer and Satb2-positive upper layer neurons at E14.5, while depletion of the alternatively spliced E12 variant did not affect layer-specific neurogenesis. While ChIP-Seq identified a big overlap for E12- and E47-specific binding sites in embryonic NSCs, including sites at the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor (CDKI) Cdkn1c gene locus, RNA-Seq revealed a unique transcriptional regulation by each splice variant. E47 activated the expression of the CDKI Cdkn1c through binding to a distal enhancer. Finally, overexpression of E47 in embryonic NSCs in vitro impaired neurite outgrowth and E47 overexpression in vivo by in utero electroporation disturbed proper layer-specific neurogenesis and upregulated p57(KIP2) expression. Overall, this study identified E2A target genes in embryonic NSCs and demonstrates that E47 regulates neuronal differentiation via p57(KIP2). AU - Pfurr, Sabrina AU - Chu, Yu AU - Bohrer, Christian AU - Greulich, Franziska AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Mammadzada, Könül AU - Hils, Miriam AU - Arnold, Sebastian AU - Taylor, Verdon AU - Schachtrup, Kristina AU - Uhlenhaut, N Henriette AU - Schachtrup, Christian ID - 805 JF - Development TI - The E2A splice variant E47 regulates the differentiation of projection neurons via p57(KIP2) during cortical development VL - 144 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The mammalian cerebral cortex is responsible for higher cognitive functions such as perception, consciousness, and acquiring and processing information. The neocortex is organized into six distinct laminae, each composed of a rich diversity of cell types which assemble into highly complex cortical circuits. Radial glia progenitors (RGPs) are responsible for producing all neocortical neurons and certain glia lineages. Here, we discuss recent discoveries emerging from clonal lineage analysis at the single RGP cell level that provide us with an inaugural quantitative framework of RGP lineage progression. We further discuss the importance of the relative contribution of intrinsic gene functions and non-cell-autonomous or community effects in regulating RGP proliferation behavior and lineage progression. AU - Beattie, Robert J AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 621 IS - 24 JF - FEBS letters SN - 00145793 TI - Mechanisms of radial glia progenitor cell lineage progression VL - 591 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The human cerebral cortex is the seat of our cognitive abilities and composed of an extraordinary number of neurons, organized in six distinct layers. The establishment of specific morphological and physiological features in individual neurons needs to be regulated with high precision. Impairments in the sequential developmental programs instructing corticogenesis lead to alterations in the cortical cytoarchitecture which is thought to represent the major underlying cause for several neurological disorders including neurodevelopmental and psychiatric diseases. In this review we discuss the role of cell polarity at sequential stages during cortex development. We first provide an overview of morphological cell polarity features in cortical neural stem cells and newly-born postmitotic neurons. We then synthesize a conceptual molecular and biochemical framework how cell polarity is established at the cellular level through a break in symmetry in nascent cortical projection neurons. Lastly we provide a perspective how the molecular mechanisms applying to single cells could be probed and integrated in an in vivo and tissue-wide context. AU - Hansen, Andi H AU - Düllberg, Christian F AU - Mieck, Christine AU - Loose, Martin AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 960 JF - Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience SN - 16625102 TI - Cell polarity in cerebral cortex development - cellular architecture shaped by biochemical networks VL - 11 ER - TY - JOUR AB - This review accompanies a 2016 SFN mini-symposium presenting examples of current studies that address a central question: How do neural stem cells (NSCs) divide in different ways to produce heterogeneous daughter types at the right time and in proper numbers to build a cerebral cortex with the appropriate size and structure? We will focus on four aspects of corticogenesis: cytokinesis events that follow apical mitoses of NSCs; coordinating abscission with delamination from the apical membrane; timing of neurogenesis and its indirect regulation through emergence of intermediate progenitors; and capacity of single NSCs to generate the correct number and laminar fate of cortical neurons. Defects in these mechanisms can cause microcephaly and other brain malformations, and understanding them is critical to designing diagnostic tools and preventive and corrective therapies. AU - Dwyer, Noelle AU - Chen, Bin AU - Chou, Shen AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Nguyen, Laurent AU - Ghashghaei, Troy ID - 1181 IS - 45 JF - Journal of Neuroscience TI - Neural stem cells to cerebral cortex: Emerging mechanisms regulating progenitor behavior and productivity VL - 36 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Branching morphogenesis of the epithelial ureteric bud forms the renal collecting duct system and is critical for normal nephron number, while low nephron number is implicated in hypertension and renal disease. Ureteric bud growth and branching requires GDNF signaling from the surrounding mesenchyme to cells at the ureteric bud tips, via the Ret receptor tyrosine kinase and coreceptor Gfrα1; Ret signaling up-regulates transcription factors Etv4 and Etv5, which are also critical for branching. Despite extensive knowledge of the genetic control of these events, it is not understood, at the cellular level, how renal branching morphogenesis is achieved or how Ret signaling influences epithelial cell behaviors to promote this process. Analysis of chimeric embryos previously suggested a role for Ret signaling in promoting cell rearrangements in the nephric duct, but this method was unsuited to study individual cell behaviors during ureteric bud branching. Here, we use Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers (MADM), combined with organ culture and time-lapse imaging, to trace the movements and divisions of individual ureteric bud tip cells. We first examine wild-type clones and then Ret or Etv4 mutant/wild-type clones in which the mutant and wild-type sister cells are differentially and heritably marked by green and red fluorescent proteins. We find that, in normal kidneys, most individual tip cells behave as self-renewing progenitors, some of whose progeny remain at the tips while others populate the growing UB trunks. In Ret or Etv4 MADM clones, the wild-type cells generated at a UB tip are much more likely to remain at, or move to, the new tips during branching and elongation, while their Ret−/− or Etv4−/− sister cells tend to lag behind and contribute only to the trunks. By tracking successive mitoses in a cell lineage, we find that Ret signaling has little effect on proliferation, in contrast to its effects on cell movement. Our results show that Ret/Etv4 signaling promotes directed cell movements in the ureteric bud tips, and suggest a model in which these cell movements mediate branching morphogenesis. AU - Riccio, Paul AU - Cebrián, Cristina AU - Zong, Hui AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Costantini, Frank ID - 1488 IS - 2 JF - PLoS Biology TI - Ret and Etv4 promote directed movements of progenitor cells during renal branching morphogenesis VL - 14 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The medial ganglionic eminence (MGE) gives rise to the majority of mouse forebrain interneurons. Here, we examine the lineage relationship among MGE-derived interneurons using a replication-defective retroviral library containing a highly diverse set of DNA barcodes. Recovering the barcodes from the mature progeny of infected progenitor cells enabled us to unambiguously determine their respective lineal relationship. We found that clonal dispersion occurs across large areas of the brain and is not restricted by anatomical divisions. As such, sibling interneurons can populate the cortex, hippocampus striatum, and globus pallidus. The majority of interneurons appeared to be generated from asymmetric divisions of MGE progenitor cells, followed by symmetric divisions within the subventricular zone. Altogether, our findings uncover that lineage relationships do not appear to determine interneuron allocation to particular regions. As such, it is likely that clonally related interneurons have considerable flexibility as to the particular forebrain circuits to which they can contribute. AU - Mayer, Christian AU - Jaglin, Xavier AU - Cobbs, Lucy AU - Bandler, Rachel AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Cepko, Constance AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Fishell, Gord ID - 1550 IS - 5 JF - Neuron TI - Clonally related forebrain interneurons disperse broadly across both functional areas and structural boundaries VL - 87 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Asymmetric cell divisions allow stem cells to balance proliferation and differentiation. During embryogenesis, murine epidermis expands rapidly from a single layer of unspecified basal layer progenitors to a stratified, differentiated epithelium. Morphogenesis involves perpendicular (asymmetric) divisions and the spindle orientation protein LGN, but little is known about how the apical localization of LGN is regulated. Here, we combine conventional genetics and lentiviral-mediated in vivo RNAi to explore the functions of the LGN-interacting proteins Par3, mInsc and Gα i3. Whereas loss of each gene alone leads to randomized division angles, combined loss of Gnai3 and mInsc causes a phenotype of mostly planar divisions, akin to loss of LGN. These findings lend experimental support for the hitherto untested model that Par3-mInsc and Gα i3 act cooperatively to polarize LGN and promote perpendicular divisions. Finally, we uncover a developmental switch between delamination-driven early stratification and spindle-orientation-dependent differentiation that occurs around E15, revealing a two-step mechanism underlying epidermal maturation. AU - Williams, Scott AU - Ratliff, Lyndsay AU - Postiglione, Maria P AU - Knoblich, Juergen AU - Fuchs, Elaine ID - 1899 IS - 8 JF - Nature Cell Biology TI - Par3-mInsc and Gα i3 cooperate to promote oriented epidermal cell divisions through LGN VL - 16 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Radial glial progenitors (RGPs) are responsible for producing nearly all neocortical neurons. To gain insight into the patterns of RGP division and neuron production, we quantitatively analyzed excitatory neuron genesis in the mouse neocortex using Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers, which provides single-cell resolution of progenitor division patterns and potential in vivo. We found that RGPs progress through a coherent program in which their proliferative potential diminishes in a predictable manner. Upon entry into the neurogenic phase, individual RGPs produce ∼8–9 neurons distributed in both deep and superficial layers, indicating a unitary output in neuronal production. Removal of OTX1, a transcription factor transiently expressed in RGPs, results in both deep- and superficial-layer neuron loss and a reduction in neuronal unit size. Moreover, ∼1/6 of neurogenic RGPs proceed to produce glia. These results suggest that progenitor behavior and histogenesis in the mammalian neocortex conform to a remarkably orderly and deterministic program. AU - Gao, Peng AU - Postiglione, Maria P AU - Krieger, Teresa AU - Hernandez, Luisirene AU - Wang, Chao AU - Han, Zhi AU - Streicher, Carmen AU - Papusheva, Ekaterina AU - Insolera, Ryan AU - Chugh, Kritika AU - Kodish, Oren AU - Huang, Kun AU - Simons, Benjamin AU - Luo, Liqun AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Shi, Song ID - 2022 IS - 4 JF - Cell TI - Deterministic progenitor behavior and unitary production of neurons in the neocortex VL - 159 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The mammalian heart has long been considered a postmitotic organ, implying that the total number of cardiomyocytes is set at birth. Analysis of cell division in the mammalian heart is complicated by cardiomyocyte binucleation shortly after birth, which makes it challenging to interpret traditional assays of cell turnover [Laflamme MA, Murray CE (2011) Nature 473(7347):326–335; Bergmann O, et al. (2009) Science 324(5923):98–102]. An elegant multi-isotope imaging-mass spectrometry technique recently calculated the low, discrete rate of cardiomyocyte generation in mice [Senyo SE, et al. (2013) Nature 493(7432):433–436], yet our cellular-level understanding of postnatal cardiomyogenesis remains limited. Herein, we provide a new line of evidence for the differentiated α-myosin heavy chain-expressing cardiomyocyte as the cell of origin of postnatal cardiomyogenesis using the “mosaic analysis with double markers” mouse model. We show limited, life-long, symmetric division of cardiomyocytes as a rare event that is evident in utero but significantly diminishes after the first month of life in mice; daughter cardiomyocytes divide very seldom, which this study is the first to demonstrate, to our knowledge. Furthermore, ligation of the left anterior descending coronary artery, which causes a myocardial infarction in the mosaic analysis with double-marker mice, did not increase the rate of cardiomyocyte division above the basal level for up to 4 wk after the injury. The clonal analysis described here provides direct evidence of postnatal mammalian cardiomyogenesis. AU - Ali, Shah AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Saadat, Lily AU - Luo, Liqun AU - Weissman, Irving AU - Ardehali, Reza ID - 2020 IS - 24 JF - PNAS TI - Existing cardiomyocytes generate cardiomyocytes at a low rate after birth in mice VL - 111 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Neurotrophins regulate diverse aspects of neuronal development and plasticity, but their precise in vivo functions during neural circuit assembly in the central brain remain unclear. We show that the neurotrophin receptor tropomyosin-related kinase C (TrkC) is required for dendritic growth and branching of mouse cerebellar Purkinje cells. Sparse TrkC knockout reduced dendrite complexity, but global Purkinje cell knockout had no effect. Removal of the TrkC ligand neurotrophin-3 (NT-3) from cerebellar granule cells, which provide major afferent input to developing Purkinje cell dendrites, rescued the dendrite defects caused by sparse TrkC disruption in Purkinje cells. Our data demonstrate that NT-3 from presynaptic neurons (granule cells) is required for TrkC-dependent competitive dendrite morphogenesis in postsynaptic neurons (Purkinje cells)—a previously unknown mechanism of neural circuit development. AU - William, Joo AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Luo, Liqun ID - 2021 IS - 6209 JF - Science TI - Dendrite morphogenesis depends on relative levels of NT-3/TrkC signaling VL - 346 ER - TY - JOUR AB - To reveal the full potential of human pluripotent stem cells, new methods for rapid, site-specific genomic engineering are needed. Here, we describe a system for precise genetic modification of human embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). We identified a novel human locus, H11, located in a safe, intergenic, transcriptionally active region of chromosome 22, as the recipient site, to provide robust, ubiquitous expression of inserted genes. Recipient cell lines were established by site-specific placement of a ‘landing pad’ cassette carrying attP sites for phiC31 and Bxb1 integrases at the H11 locus by spontaneous or TALEN-assisted homologous recombination. Dual integrase cassette exchange (DICE) mediated by phiC31 and Bxb1 integrases was used to insert genes of interest flanked by phiC31 and Bxb1 attB sites at the H11 locus, replacing the landing pad. This system provided complete control over content, direction and copy number of inserted genes, with a specificity of 100%. A series of genes, including mCherry and various combinations of the neural transcription factors LMX1a, FOXA2 and OTX2, were inserted in recipient cell lines derived from H9 ESC, as well as iPSC lines derived from a Parkinson’s disease patient and a normal sibling control. The DICE system offers rapid, efficient and precise gene insertion in ESC and iPSC and is particularly well suited for repeated modifications of the same locus. AU - Zhu, Fangfang AU - Gamboa, Matthew AU - Farruggio, Alfonso AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Tasic, Bosiljka AU - Schüle, Birgitt AU - Chen Tsai, Yanru AU - Calos, Michele ID - 2261 IS - 5 JF - Nucleic Acids Research TI - DICE, an efficient system for iterative genomic editing in human pluripotent stem cells VL - 42 ER - TY - CHAP AB - Coordinated migration of newly-born neurons to their target territories is essential for correct neuronal circuit assembly in the developing brain. Although a cohort of signaling pathways has been implicated in the regulation of cortical projection neuron migration, the precise molecular mechanisms and how a balanced interplay of cell-autonomous and non-autonomous functions of candidate signaling molecules controls the discrete steps in the migration process, are just being revealed. In this chapter, I will focally review recent advances that improved our understanding of the cell-autonomous and possible cell-nonautonomous functions of the evolutionarily conserved LIS1/NDEL1-complex in regulating the sequential steps of cortical projection neuron migration. I will then elaborate on the emerging concept that the Reelin signaling pathway, acts exactly at precise stages in the course of cortical projection neuron migration. Lastly, I will discuss how finely tuned transcriptional programs and downstream effectors govern particular aspects in driving radial migration at discrete stages and how they regulate the precise positioning of cortical projection neurons in the developing cerebral cortex. AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ED - Nguyen, Laurent ID - 2265 T2 - Cellular and Molecular Control of Neuronal Migration TI - Molecular pathways controlling the sequential steps of cortical projection neuron migration VL - 800 ER - TY - JOUR AB - The cerebral cortex, the seat of our cognitive abilities, is composed of an intricate network of billions of excitatory projection and inhibitory interneurons. Postmitotic cortical neurons are generated by a diverse set of neural stem cell progenitors within dedicated zones and defined periods of neurogenesis during embryonic development. Disruptions in neurogenesis can lead to alterations in the neuronal cytoarchitecture, which is thought to represent a major underlying cause for several neurological disorders, including microcephaly, autism and epilepsy. Although a number of signaling pathways regulating neurogenesis have been described, the precise cellular and molecular mechanisms regulating the functional neural stem cell properties in cortical neurogenesis remain unclear. Here, we discuss the most up-to-date strategies to monitor the fundamental mechanistic parameters of neuronal progenitor proliferation, and recent advances deciphering the logic and dynamics of neurogenesis. AU - Postiglione, Maria P AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 2175 IS - 3 JF - Future Neurology SN - 1479-6708 TI - Monitoring neurogenesis in the cerebral cortex: an update VL - 9 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Faithful progression through the cell cycle is crucial to the maintenance and developmental potential of stem cells. Here, we demonstrate that neural stem cells (NSCs) and intermediate neural progenitor cells (NPCs) employ a zinc-finger transcription factor specificity protein 2 (Sp2) as a cell cycle regulator in two temporally and spatially distinct progenitor domains. Differential conditional deletion of Sp2 in early embryonic cerebral cortical progenitors, and perinatal olfactory bulb progenitors disrupted transitions through G1, G2 and M phases, whereas DNA synthesis appeared intact. Cell-autonomous function of Sp2 was identified by deletion of Sp2 using mosaic analysis with double markers, which clearly established that conditional Sp2-null NSCs and NPCs are M phase arrested in vivo. Importantly, conditional deletion of Sp2 led to a decline in the generation of NPCs and neurons in the developing and postnatal brains. Our findings implicate Sp2-dependent mechanisms as novel regulators of cell cycle progression, the absence of which disrupts neurogenesis in the embryonic and postnatal brain. AU - Liang, Huixuan AU - Xiao, Guanxi AU - Yin, Haifeng AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Horowitz, Jonathan AU - Ghashghaei, Troy ID - 2264 IS - 3 JF - Development TI - Neural development is dependent on the function of specificity protein 2 in cell cycle progression VL - 140 ER - TY - JOUR AB - MADM (Mosaic Analysis with Double Markers) technology offers a genetic approach in mice to visualize and concomitantly manipulate genetically defined cells at clonal level and single cell resolution. MADM employs Cre recombinase/loxP-dependent interchromosomal mitotic recombination to reconstitute two split marker genes—green GFP and red tdTomato—and can label sparse clones of homozygous mutant cells in one color and wild-type cells in the other color in an otherwise unlabeled background. At present, major MADM applications include lineage tracing, single cell labeling, conditional knockouts in small populations of cells and induction of uniparental chromosome disomy to assess effects of genomic imprinting. MADM can be applied universally in the mouse with the sole limitation being the specificity of the promoter controlling Cre recombinase expression. Here I review recent developments and extensions of the MADM technique and give an overview of the major discoveries and progresses enabled by the implementation of the novel genetic MADM tools. AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon ID - 2303 IS - 6 JF - Frontiers in Biology TI - Dissection of gene function at clonal level using mosaic analysis with double markers VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Individuals with Down syndrome (DS) present important motor deficits that derive from altered motor development of infants and young children. DYRK1A, a candidate gene for DS abnormalities has been implicated in motor function due to its expression in motor nuclei in the adult brain, and its overexpression in DS mouse models leads to hyperactivity and altered motor learning. However, its precise role in the adult motor system, or its possible involvement in postnatal locomotor development has not yet been clarified. During the postnatal period we observed time-specific expression of Dyrk1A in discrete subsets of brainstem nuclei and spinal cord motor neurons. Interestingly, we describe for the first time the presence of Dyrk1A in the presynaptic terminal of the neuromuscular junctions and its axonal transport from the facial nucleus, suggesting a function for Dyrk1A in these structures. Relevant to DS, Dyrk1A overexpression in transgenic mice (TgDyrk1A) produces motor developmental alterations possibly contributing to DS motor phenotypes and modifies the numbers of motor cholinergic neurons, suggesting that the kinase may have a role in the development of the brainstem and spinal cord motor system. AU - Arquè Fuste, Gloria AU - Casanovas, Anna AU - Dierssen, Mara ID - 2838 IS - 1 JF - PLoS One TI - Dyrk1A is dynamically expressed on subsets of motor neurons and in the neuromuscular junction: Possible role in Down syndrome VL - 8 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Genomic imprinting leads to preferred expression of either the maternal or paternal alleles of a subset of genes. Imprinting is essential for mammalian development, and its deregulation causes many diseases. However, the functional relevance of imprinting at the cellular level is poorly understood for most imprinted genes. We used mosaic analysis with double markers (MADM) in mice to create uniparental disomies (UPDs) and to visualize imprinting effects with single-cell resolution. Although chromosome 12 UPD did not produce detectable phenotypes, chromosome 7 UPD caused highly significant paternal growth dominance in the liver and lung, but not in the brain or heart. A single gene on chromosome 7, encoding the secreted insulin-like growth factor 2 (IGF2), accounts for most of the paternal dominance effect. Mosaic analyses implied additional imprinted loci on chromosome 7 acting cell autonomously to transmit the IGF2 signal. Our study reveals chromosome- and cell-type specificity of genomic imprinting effects. AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Johnson, Randy AU - Luo, Liqun ID - 2855 IS - 3 JF - Cell Reports TI - Mosaic analysis with double markers reveals cell type specific paternal growth dominance VL - 3 ER - TY - JOUR AB - Nestin-cre transgenic mice have been widely used to direct recombination to neural stem cells (NSCs) and intermediate neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Here we report that a readily utilized, and the only commercially available, Nestin-cre line is insufficient for directing recombination in early embryonic NSCs and NPCs. Analysis of recombination efficiency in multiple cre-dependent reporters and a genetic mosaic line revealed consistent temporal and spatial patterns of recombination in NSCs and NPCs. For comparison we utilized a knock-in Emx1cre line and found robust recombination in NSCs and NPCs in ventricular and subventricular zones of the cerebral cortices as early as embryonic day 12.5. In addition we found that the rate of Nestin-cre driven recombination only reaches sufficiently high levels in NSCs and NPCs during late embryonic and early postnatal periods. These findings are important when commercially available cre lines are considered for directing recombination to embryonic NSCs and NPCs. AU - Liang, Huixuan AU - Hippenmeyer, Simon AU - Ghashghaei, H. ID - 2263 IS - 12 JF - Biology open TI - A Nestin-cre transgenic mouse is insufficient for recombination in early embryonic neural progenitors VL - 1 ER -