Differential expression of S100 proteins in the developing human hippocampus and temporal cortex

S100 calcium binding proteins have long been known to express in the adult nervous system, but their distribution in the developing brain, especially the human fetal brain, is largely unknown. We used an immunohistochemical method to determine the expression of three S100 proteins, namely S100A4, S100A5, and S100A13, in the human fetal hippocampus and temporal cortex from 12 to 33 weeks of gestation. At 12 weeks, S100A5 was strongly expressed in the cells and fibers of the polymorphic, pyramidal, and molecular layers of the hippocampus. Thereafter, its expression decreased with age. In the temporal cortex, S100A5 expression was detected from 12 weeks onwards, peaked at 20 to 24 weeks, and then decreased with age. The horizontal fibers of the marginal zone were immunoreactive at all stages examined. S100A13 immunoreactivity was also detected in both cells and fibers of the hippocampus at 12 weeks, became slightly stronger at 20 weeks, and then decreased with age. In the temporal cortex, S100A13 immunoreactivity was also strong in all cellular layers at 12 to 24 weeks before it declined with age from 28 weeks onwards. Among the three proteins examined, S100A4 showed the weakest expression, which was detected in the cells and fibers of the hippocampus and the temporal cortex at all stages examined. Our results have demonstrated for the first time, in the human fetal hippocampus and temporal cortex, specific spatio-temporal patterns of expression of these proteins, all of which are likely to have different roles to play during development despite their pronounced sequence homology.