Adult neural stem cells and neurogenesis are resilient to intermittent fasting.

Intermittent fasting (IF) is a promising strategy to counteract ageing shown to increase the number of adult-born neurons in the dentate gyrus of mice. However, it is unclear which steps of the adult neurogenesis process are regulated by IF. The number of adult neural stem cells (NSCs) decreases with age in an activation-dependent manner and, to counteract this loss, adult NSCs are found in a quiescent state which ensures their long-term maintenance. We aimed to determine if and how IF affects adult NSCs in the hippocampus. To identify the effects of every-other-day IF on NSCs and all following steps in the neurogenic lineage, we combined fasting with lineage tracing and label retention assays. We show here that IF does not affect NSC activation or maintenance and, that contrary to previous reports, IF does not increase neurogenesis. The same results are obtained regardless of strain, sex, diet length, tamoxifen administration or new-born neuron identification method. Our data suggest that NSCs maintain homeostasis upon IF and that this intervention is not a reliable strategy to increase adult neurogenesis.

Dchs1-Fat4 regulation of osteogenic differentiation in mouse.

In human, mutations of the protocadherins FAT4 and DCHS1 result in Van Maldergem syndrome, which is characterised, in part, by craniofacial abnormalities. Here, we analyse the role of Dchs1-Fat4 signalling during osteoblast differentiation in mouse. We show that Fat4 and Dchs1 mutants mimic the craniofacial phenotype of the human syndrome and that Dchs1-Fat4 signalling is essential for osteoblast differentiation. In Dchs1/Fat4 mutants, proliferation of osteoprogenitors is increased and osteoblast differentiation is delayed. We show that loss of Dchs1-Fat4 signalling is linked to increased Yap-Tead activity and that Yap is expressed and required for proliferation in osteoprogenitors. In contrast, Taz is expressed in more-committed Runx2-expressing osteoblasts, Taz does not regulate osteoblast proliferation and Taz-Tead activity is unaffected in Dchs1/Fat4 mutants. Finally, we show that Yap and Taz differentially regulate the transcriptional activity of Runx2, and that the activity of Yap-Runx2 and Taz-Runx2 complexes is altered in Dchs1/Fat4 mutant osteoblasts. In conclusion, these data identify Dchs1-Fat4 as a signalling pathway in osteoblast differentiation, reveal its crucial role within the early Runx2 progenitors, and identify distinct requirements for Yap and Taz during osteoblast differentiation.

Fat4-Dchs1 signalling controls cell proliferation in developing vertebrae.

The protocadherins Fat4 and Dchs1 act as a receptor-ligand pair to regulate many developmental processes in mice and humans, including development of the vertebrae. Based on conservation of function between Drosophila and mammals, Fat4-Dchs1 signalling has been proposed to regulate planar cell polarity (PCP) and activity of the Hippo effectors Yap and Taz, which regulate cell proliferation, survival and differentiation. There is strong evidence for Fat regulation of PCP in mammals but the link with the Hippo pathway is unclear. In Fat4(-/-) and Dchs1(-/-) mice, many vertebrae are split along the midline and fused across the anterior-posterior axis, suggesting that these defects might arise due to altered cell polarity and/or changes in cell proliferation/differentiation. We show that the somite and sclerotome are specified appropriately, the transcriptional network that drives early chondrogenesis is intact, and that cell polarity within the sclerotome is unperturbed. We find that the key defect in Fat4 and Dchs1 mutant mice is decreased proliferation in the early sclerotome. This results in fewer chondrogenic cells within the developing vertebral body, which fail to condense appropriately along the midline. Analysis of Fat4;Yap and Fat4;Taz double mutants, and expression of their transcriptional target Ctgf, indicates that Fat4-Dchs1 regulates vertebral development independently of Yap and Taz. Thus, we have identified a new pathway crucial for the development of the vertebrae and our data indicate that novel mechanisms of Fat4-Dchs1 signalling have evolved to control cell proliferation within the developing vertebrae.

Altered Neocortical Gene Expression, Brain Overgrowth and Functional Over-Connectivity in Chd8 Haploinsufficient Mice.

Truncating CHD8 mutations are amongst the highest confidence risk factors for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) identified to date. Here, we report that Chd8 heterozygous mice display increased brain size, motor delay, hypertelorism, pronounced hypoactivity, and anomalous responses to social stimuli. Whereas gene expression in the neocortex is only mildly affected at midgestation, over 600 genes are differentially expressed in the early postnatal neocortex. Genes involved in cell adhesion and axon guidance are particularly prominent amongst the downregulated transcripts. Resting-state functional MRI identified increased synchronized activity in cortico-hippocampal and auditory-parietal networks in Chd8 heterozygous mutant mice, implicating altered connectivity as a potential mechanism underlying the behavioral phenotypes. Together, these data suggest that altered brain growth and diminished expression of important neurodevelopmental genes that regulate long-range brain wiring are followed by distinctive anomalies in functional brain connectivity in Chd8+/- mice. Human imaging studies have reported altered functional connectivity in ASD patients, with long-range under-connectivity seemingly more frequent. Our data suggest that CHD8 haploinsufficiency represents a specific subtype of ASD where neuropsychiatric symptoms are underpinned by long-range over-connectivity.

Dchs1-Fat4 regulation of polarized cell behaviours during skeletal morphogenesis.

Skeletal shape varies widely across species as adaptation to specialized modes of feeding and locomotion, but how skeletal shape is established is unknown. An example of extreme diversity in the shape of a skeletal structure can be seen in the sternum, which varies considerably across species. Here we show that the Dchs1-Fat4 planar cell polarity pathway controls cell orientation in the early skeletal condensation to define the shape and relative dimensions of the mouse sternum. These changes fit a model of cell intercalation along differential Dchs1-Fat4 activity that drives a simultaneous narrowing, thickening and elongation of the sternum. Our results identify the regulation of cellular polarity within the early pre-chondrogenic mesenchyme, when skeletal shape is established, and provide the first demonstration that Fat4 and Dchs1 establish polarized cell behaviour intrinsically within the mesenchyme. Our data also reveal the first indication that cell intercalation processes occur during ventral body wall elongation and closure.

Cenpj/CPAP regulates progenitor divisions and neuronal migration in the cerebral cortex downstream of Ascl1.

The proneural factor Ascl1 controls multiple steps of neurogenesis in the embryonic brain, including progenitor division and neuronal migration. Here we show that Cenpj, also known as CPAP, a microcephaly gene, is a transcriptional target of Ascl1 in the embryonic cerebral cortex. We have characterized the role of Cenpj during cortical development by in utero electroporation knockdown and found that silencing Cenpj in the ventricular zone disrupts centrosome biogenesis and randomizes the cleavage plane orientation of radial glia progenitors. Moreover, we show that downregulation of Cenpj in post-mitotic neurons increases stable microtubules and leads to slower neuronal migration, abnormal centrosome position and aberrant neuronal morphology. Moreover, rescue experiments shows that Cenpj mediates the role of Ascl1 in centrosome biogenesis in progenitor cells and in microtubule dynamics in migrating neurons. These data provide insights into genetic pathways controlling cortical development and primary microcephaly observed in humans with mutations in Cenpj.

Fgf8-related secondary organizers exert different polarizing planar instructions along the mouse anterior neural tube.

Early brain patterning depends on proper arrangement of positional information. This information is given by gradients of secreted signaling molecules (morphogens) detected by individual cells within the responding tissue, leading to specific fate decisions. Here we report that the morphogen FGF8 exerts initially a differential signal activity along the E9.5 mouse neural tube. We demonstrate that this polarizing activity codes by RAS-regulated ERK1/2 signaling and depends on the topographical location of the secondary organizers: the isthmic organizer (IsO) and the anterior neural ridge (anr) but not on zona limitans intrathalamica (zli). Our results suggest that Sprouty2, a negative modulator of RAS/ERK pathway, is important for regulating Fgf8 morphogenetic signal activity by controlling Fgf8-induced signaling pathways and positional information during early brain development.

Nolz1 promotes striatal neurogenesis through the regulation of retinoic acid signaling.

BACKGROUND: Nolz1 is a zinc finger transcription factor whose expression is enriched in the lateral ganglionic eminence (LGE), although its function is still unknown. RESULTS: Here we analyze the role of Nolz1 during LGE development. We show that Nolz1 expression is high in proliferating neural progenitor cells (NPCs) of the LGE subventricular zone. In addition, low levels of Nolz1 are detected in the mantle zone, as well as in the adult striatum. Similarly, Nolz1 is highly expressed in proliferating LGE-derived NPC cultures, but its levels rapidly decrease upon cell differentiation, pointing to a role of Nolz1 in the control of NPC proliferation and/or differentiation. In agreement with this hypothesis, we find that Nolz1 over-expression promotes cell cycle exit of NPCs in neurosphere cultures and negatively regulates proliferation in telencephalic organotypic cultures. Within LGE primary cultures, Nolz1 over-expression promotes the acquisition of a neuronal phenotype, since it increases the number of ß-III tubulin (Tuj1)- and microtubule-associated protein (MAP)2-positive neurons, and inhibits astrocyte generation and/or differentiation. Retinoic acid (RA) is one of the most important morphogens involved in striatal neurogenesis, and regulates Nolz1 expression in different systems. Here we show that Nolz1 also responds to this morphogen in E12.5 LGE-derived cell cultures. However, Nolz1 expression is not regulated by RA in E14.5 LGE-derived cell cultures, nor is it affected during LGE development in mouse models that present decreased RA levels. Interestingly, we find that Gsx2, which is necessary for normal RA signaling during LGE development, is also required for Nolz1 expression, which is lost in Gsx2 knockout mice. These findings suggest that Nolz1 might act downstream of Gsx2 to regulate RA-induced neurogenesis. Keeping with this hypothesis, we show that Nolz1 induces the selective expression of the RA receptor (RAR)ß without altering RARα or RARγ. In addition, Nozl1 over-expression increases RA signaling since it stimulates the RA response element. This RA signaling is essential for Nolz1-induced neurogenesis, which is impaired in a RA-free environment or in the presence of a RAR inverse agonist. It has been proposed that Drosophila Gsx2 and Nolz1 homologues could cooperate with the transcriptional co-repressors Groucho-TLE to regulate cell proliferation. In agreement with this view, we show that Nolz1 could act in collaboration with TLE-4, as they are expressed at the same time in NPC cultures and during mouse development. CONCLUSIONS: Nolz1 promotes RA signaling in the LGE, contributing to the striatal neurogenesis during development.

Molecular events directing the patterning and specification of the cerebellum

The vertebrate brain is a remarkably complex anatomical structure which contains diverse subdivisions and neuronal subtypes with specific synaptic connections that contribute to the complexity of its function. The neural tube (the primordial brain) has to be progressively regionalized by means of precise control of the spatial and temporal arrangement of an orchestrated cocktail of genes. These will regulate inter- and intracellular signals driving a proper molecular patterning and specification of the distinct brain subdivisions, and thus will generate the structural basis of complexity and cellular diversity which characterize the brain. The present revision focuses on the main molecules involved during early development of the vertebrate cerebellum, the most rostral and dorsal structure of the hindbrain. We will survey the literature related to the early molecular mechanisms arising from the isthmus to pattern the caudal midbrain and rostral hindbrain primordia. The isthmus retains morphogenetic properties to further refining these subdivisions. Once the patterning of the cerebellar anlage is established, further molecular events (coming from the ventricular side and the rhombic lip) will specify the diverse neural cell population and the fine-tuning of the stereotyped morphology and layers of the cerebellum. Finally, we will discuss the combination of molecular genetics (gene expression pattern maps) and modern neuroanatomy (based on immunohistochemistry and highly sensitive neuroimaging), which have led to an increased interest in describing the neurodevelopment mechanisms underlying structural disorders and intellectual discapacities that we currently observe in congenital anomalies of the human cerebellum

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