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First published online September 12, 2006

Development 133, 1905e (2006)
© The Company of Biologists Limited
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In this issue

Megane: a basic requirement for GABAergic identity


Figure 1

Conserved bHLH transcription factors regulate cell-fate decisions and neuronal differentiation in the developing CNS of invertebrates and vertebrates. In Drosophila, Hairy and Enhancer of split [H/E(spl)] bHLH proteins maintain neural progenitors in a proliferative state by antagonizing the activity of proneural bHLH proteins. But, as Guimera and co-workers now report, the H/E(spl)-related mouse protein Megane (Mgn) is required for the differentiation of GABAergic neurons in the superior colliculus, part of the dorsal midbrain (see p. 3847). To discover the physiological role of Mgn, the researchers generated Mgn-null mice, which made normal numbers of GABAergic progenitor cells during development but failed to express Gad65 or Gad67 in the superior colliculus; these genes encode the enzymes that synthesize the inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA. As is consistent with a deficit in GABAergic neurons, the mice also developed epilepsy-like symptoms soon after birth. Thus, the researchers propose that vertebrate h/E(spl)-related genes, unlike those in the fly, can be involved in the acquisition of specific neuronal identities.


Related articles in Development:

Megane/Heslike is required for normal GABAergic differentiation in the mouse superior colliculus
Jordi Guimera, Daniela Vogt Weisenhorn, and Wolfgang Wurst
Development 2006 133: 3847-3857. [Abstract] [Full Text]  




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