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Molecular Control Of Cell Type Diversity In The Developing Spinal Cord
Author(s) -
Yamada Toshiya,
Karunaratne Asanka,
Hargrave Murray
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
clinical and experimental pharmacology and physiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.752
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1440-1681
pISSN - 0305-1870
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1681.1999.03107.x
Subject(s) - spinal cord , gdf7 , biology , sonic hedgehog , cell type , transcription factor , neuroscience , embryonic stem cell , microbiology and biotechnology , cell , embryo , anatomy , hedgehog , genetics , gene , signal transduction
SUMMARY 1. During embryonic development, a diverse array of neurons and glia are generated at specific positions along the dorso– ventral and rostro–caudal axes of the spinal cord from a common pool of precursor cells. 2. This cell type diversity can be distinguished by the spatially and temporally coordinated expression of several transcription factors that are also linked to cell type specification at a very early stage of spinal cord development. 3. Recent studies have started to uncover that the generation of cell type diversity in the developing spinal cord. Moreover, distinct cell types in the spinal cord appear to be determined by the spatially and temporally coordinated expression of transcription factors. 4. The expression of these factors also appears to be controlled by gradients of factors expressed by ventral and dorsal midline cells, namely Sonic hedgehog and members of the transforming growth factor‐β family. 5. Changes in the competence of precursor cells and local cell interactions may also play important roles in cell type specification within the developing spinal cord.