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Neural Stem Cells in Cerebral Cortex Development

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Neuroscience in the 21st Century

Abstract

Neural stem cells (NSCs) in the developing neuroepithelium, as well as the progenitors they generate, eventually give rise to all the neurons of the mammalian central nervous system (CNS). In addition, they generate other essential neural cells, mainly the two types of macroglial cells in the CNS, astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. This chapter focuses on the cellular and molecular aspects of neural stem cell biology during CNS embryonic neurogenesis, the process through which these initially multipotent cells undergo fate restriction steps that will eventually lead to all the neuronal subtypes. We describe neurogenesis mainly in the developing cerebral neocortex, although the principles highlighted here describe also many aspects of the development of other CNS regions. We take the rodent brain as the base model system, because many principal hallmarks of brain development are evolutionarily conserved between rodents and other mammals, including hominids. Key differences exist, however, and they are described where appropriate. We also highlight some areas of intense current research and mention ideas that could contribute to our understanding of CNS development and function.

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Abbreviations

APs:

apical progenitors

aRG:

apical radial glia

bIPs:

basal intermediate progenitors

BPs:

basal progenitors

bRG:

basal radial glia

CNS:

central nervous system

CSF:

cerebrospinal fluid

FGFs:

fibroblast growth factors

INM:

interkinetic nuclear migration

ISVZ and OSVZ:

inner and outer SVZ

NECs:

neuroepithelial cells

NSCs:

neural stem cells

Shh:

Sonic hedgehog

SVZ:

subventricular zone

TFs:

transcription factors

VZ:

ventricular zone

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Acknowledgments

We thank Miguel Turrero García for his contributions to previous editions of this chapter. Elena Taverna assisted with the graphic design of Figs. 2, 3, and 4. We also thank members of the Huttner lab for useful discussions and critical reading of a previous version of this manuscript. Research in the Huttner lab was supported by grants from the DFG (SFB 655, A2; TRR 83, Tp6) and the ERC (250197), by the DFG-funded Center for Regenerative Therapies Dresden, and by the Fonds der Chemischen Industrie.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Dresden, Germany

    Felipe Mora-Bermúdez, Samir Vaid & Wieland B. Huttner

Authors
  1. Felipe Mora-Bermúdez
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  2. Samir Vaid
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  3. Wieland B. Huttner
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Felipe Mora-Bermúdez , Samir Vaid or Wieland B. Huttner .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Rockefeller University Lab. Neurobiology & Behaviour, New York, NY, USA

    Donald W. Pfaff

  2. National Institutes of Health (NIH), National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA), Rockville, MD, USA

    Nora D. Volkow

  3. Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA

    John Rubenstein

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Mora-Bermúdez, F., Vaid, S., Huttner, W.B. (2022). Neural Stem Cells in Cerebral Cortex Development. In: Pfaff, D.W., Volkow, N.D., Rubenstein, J. (eds) Neuroscience in the 21st Century. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6434-1_7-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6434-1_7-4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4614-6434-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6434-1

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    Neural Stem Cells in Cerebral Cortex Development
    Published:
    22 June 2022

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6434-1_7-4

  2. Original

    Neural Stem Cells in Cerebral Cortex Development
    Published:
    30 April 2016

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6434-1_7-3

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