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Ex Utero Electroporation and Organotypic Slice Cultures of Embryonic Mouse Brains for Live-Imaging of Migrating GABAergic Interneurons
Published on: April 20, 2018
Multidirectional and multizonal tangential migration of GABAergic interneurons in the developing cerebral cortex
Daisuke H Tanaka1, Kazunori Maekawa, Yuchio Yanagawa
1Graduate School of Frontier Biosciences, Osaka University, Japan Science and Technology Corporation, Japan.
Development (Cambridge, England)
|May 5, 2006
Summary
Most GABAergic interneurons migrate tangentially into the cortex. New research reveals these neurons undergo multidirectional tangential migration within the marginal and ventricular zones, dispersing widely to ensure balanced cortical distribution.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Developmental Biology
- Cell Biology
Background:
- GABAergic interneurons are crucial for cortical function.
- Their tangential migration from the basal forebrain into the cortex is established.
- The precise migratory pathways and modes within the developing cortex were largely unknown.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the migratory pathways and mode of interneuron migration within the developing cerebral cortex.
- To elucidate the spatial distribution and dynamics of GABAergic interneuron migration.
Main Methods:
- Utilized time-lapse imaging in GAD67-GFP knock-in embryonic mice.
- Employed in vivo labeling with glutamate decarboxylase (GAD)67-green fluorescence protein (GFP) to track GABAergic neurons.
- Applied in vivo lipophilic dye labeling to trace migration routes.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated multidirectional tangential (MDT) migration of interneurons in both the marginal zone (MZ) and ventricular zone (VZ).
- Quantitative analysis revealed rostrocaudal migration predominates over mediolateral migration in both zones.
- Observed MDT migration in the MZ extending up to 3 mm across the cortex over several days.
Conclusions:
- Cortical interneurons undergo a secondary, long-distance, multidirectional tangential migration phase within the MZ.
- This MDT migration likely disperses and intermixes interneuron subtypes throughout the cortex.
- Suggests a mechanism for achieving a balanced distribution of interneuron subtypes within the developing cortex.
