Cerebral Cortex Advance Access published online on May 13, 2004
Cerebral Cortex, doi:10.1093/cercor/bhh074
© 2004 by Oxford University Press
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1 Neuroscience Laboratories, Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Toyonaka, Osaka 560-8531, Japan
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: nobuhiko{at}fbs.osaka-u.ac.jp.
Laminar specificity is one of the most striking features of neocortical circuitry. To explore the molecular basis of this specificity, particularly in relation to thalamocortical connectivity, we searched for the genes expressed in the upper cortical layers by constructing a subtraction cDNA library that was enriched for genes expressed in layer 4 of perinatal rat somatosensory cortex. Differential screening, sequence analysis and in situ hybridization demonstrated that a new unc5 family member (unc5h4), deltex-like gene, stem cell factor (SCF) and myocyte-specific enhancer factor-2C (MEF-2C) were specifically expressed in layer 4 or layers 2/3-4 at postnatal day 7, by when laminar organization and fundamental cortical circuitries have been established. In terms of regional specificity, unc5h4 and SCF signals were stronger in sensory cortices, whereas MEF-2C and deltex-like gene were expressed rather uniformly in all neocortical regions. Analysis during development demonstrated that expression of these genes was pronounced between late embryonic and early postnatal developmental stages, except for MEF-2C expression, which continued in later stages. These results demonstrate that certain types of molecules including transcription factors, receptor and ligand molecules, are expressed specifically in the upper layers of the developing neocortex, suggesting a role in laminar specification of cortical cells and circuitry. Key Words:
cerebral cortex, gene expression, layer specificity, thalamocortical projection, unc5h4
Article
Identification of the Genes that are Expressed in the Upper Layers of the Neocortex
2 Department of Human Gene Research, Kazusa DNA Research Institute, 2-6-7 Kazusa-kamatari, Chiba 292-0818 Japan
Abstract 
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  B. J. Molyneaux, P. Arlotta, R. M. Fame, J. L. MacDonald, K. L. MacQuarrie, and J. D. Macklis Novel Subtype-Specific Genes Identify Distinct Subpopulations of Callosal Projection Neurons J. Neurosci., September 30, 2009; 29(39): 12343 - 12354. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 Y. Hayano and N. Yamamoto Activity-Dependent Thalamocortical Axon Branching Neuroscientist, August 1, 2008; 14(4): 359 - 368. [Abstract] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
K. Shinzawa, H. Sumi, M. Ikawa, Y. Matsuoka, M. Okabe, S. Sakoda, and Y. Tsujimoto Neuroaxonal Dystrophy Caused by Group VIA Phospholipase A2 Deficiency in Mice: A Model of Human Neurodegenerative Disease J. Neurosci., February 27, 2008; 28(9): 2212 - 2220. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 A. Takeuchi, T. Hamasaki, E. D. Litwack, and D. D.M. O'Leary Novel IgCAM, MDGA1, Expressed in Unique Cortical Area- and Layer-Specific Patterns and Transiently by Distinct Forebrain Populations of Cajal-Retzius Neurons Cereb Cortex, July 1, 2007; 17(7): 1531 - 1541. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
J. L. Bartoe, W. L. McKenna, T. K. Quan, B. K. Stafford, J. A. Moore, J. Xia, K. Takamiya, R. L. Huganir, and L. Hinck Protein interacting with C-kinase 1/protein kinase Calpha-mediated endocytosis converts netrin-1-mediated repulsion to attraction. J. Neurosci., March 22, 2006; 26(12): 3192 - 3205. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|