Synonyms
Transcription factor codes; Combinatorial action of transcription factors; Neuronal determination; Neuronal differentiation
Definition
A “combinatorial code” of transcription factors is commonly used to refer to two related phenomena in the specification of neurons:
- 1.
Cellular definition. i) A combination of transcription factors that is required together to activate or repress a certain gene in a certain cell. ii) A combination of transcription factors that is required together to execute a neuron’s distinct differentiation program.
- 2.
Developmental definition. i) The difference in the combination of transcription factors, between neurons, that accounts for their distinct gene expression profiles. ii) A spatial or temporal transition in transcription factor expression that confers a distinct program of neuronal differentiation or gene expression.
Characteristics
The nervous system contains many different types of neurons, whose differences ultimately reside in their distinct...
References
Davidson EH (2001) Genomic regulatory systems. Academic Press, San Diego, CA
Wenick AS, Hobert O (2004) Genomic cis-regulatory architecture and trans-acting regulators of a single interneuron-specific gene battery in C. elegans. Dev Cell 6:757–770
Jorgensen JS, Quirk CC, Nilson JH (2004) Multiple and overlapping combinatorial codes orchestrate hormonal responsiveness and dictate cell-specific expression of the genes encoding luteinizing hormone. Endocr Rev 25:521–542
Wasserman WW, Sandelin A (2004) Applied bioinformatics for the identification of regulatory elements. Nat Rev Genet 5:276–287
Lee S-K, Pfaff SL (2001) Transcriptional networks regulating neuronal identity in the developing spinal cord. Nat Neurosci Suppl 4:1183–1191
Arendt D, Nubler-Jung K (1999) Comparison of early nerve cord development in insects and vertebrates. Review Article. Development 126:2309–2325
Bertrand N, Castro DS, Guillemot F (2002) Proneural genes and the specification of neural cell types. Nat Rev Neuro 517–530
Baumgardt M, Miguel-Aliaga I, Karlsson D, Ekman H, Thor S (2007). Specification of neuronal identities by feedforward combinatorial coding. PLoS Biol 5(2):e37, 0295–0308
Pearson BJ, Doe CQ (2004) Specification of temporal identity in the developing nervous system. Annu Rev Cell Dev Biol 20:619–647
Allan DW, Park D, St. Pierre SE, Taghert PH, Thor S (2005) Regulators acting independently and in combinatorial codes to specify different aspects of neuronal identity. Neuron 45:689–700
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer-Verlag GmbH Berlin Heidelberg
About this entry
Cite this entry
Allan, D.W. (2009). Combinatorial Transcription Factor Codes and Neuron Specification. In: Binder, M.D., Hirokawa, N., Windhorst, U. (eds) Encyclopedia of Neuroscience. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29678-2_1132
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-540-29678-2_1132
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-23735-8
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-29678-2
eBook Packages: Biomedical and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences