Abstract
Transcription factors from the nuclear factor one (NFI) family have been shown to play a central role in regulating neural progenitor cell differentiation within the embryonic and post-natal brain. NFIA and NFIB, for instance, promote the differentiation and functional maturation of granule neurons within the cerebellum. Mice lacking Nfix exhibit delays in the development of neuronal and glial lineages within the cerebellum, but the cell-type-specific expression of this transcription factor remains undefined. Here, we examined the expression of NFIX, together with various cell-type-specific markers, within the developing and adult cerebellum using both chromogenic immunohistochemistry and co-immunofluorescence labelling and confocal microscopy. In embryos, NFIX was expressed by progenitor cells within the rhombic lip and ventricular zone. After birth, progenitor cells within the external granule layer, as well as migrating and mature granule neurons, expressed NFIX. Within the adult cerebellum, NFIX displayed a broad expression profile, and was evident within granule cells, Bergmann glia, and interneurons, but not within Purkinje neurons. Furthermore, transcriptomic profiling of cerebellar granule neuron progenitor cells showed that multiple splice variants of Nfix are expressed within this germinal zone of the post-natal brain. Collectively, these data suggest that NFIX plays a role in regulating progenitor cell biology within the embryonic and post-natal cerebellum, as well as an ongoing role within multiple neuronal and glial populations within the adult cerebellum.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Luke Hammond and Daniel Matthews for technical assistance. This work was supported by a National Health and Medical Research Council project Grant (1057751 to MP), a Cancer Council Queensland Grant (MP), an Australian Research Council Grant (DP160100368 to MP), and NYSTEM Grants (C026714, C026429, and C030133 to RMG). MP was supported by a fellowship (Australian Research Council Future Fellowship; FT120100170). JF and AE were supported by Australian Postgraduate Awards.
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Fraser, J., Essebier, A., Gronostajski, R.M. et al. Cell-type-specific expression of NFIX in the developing and adult cerebellum. Brain Struct Funct 222, 2251–2270 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-016-1340-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-016-1340-8