Neuronal migration illuminated: a look under the hood of the living neuron

During vertebrate brain development, migration of neurons from the germinal zones to their final laminar positions is essential to establish functional neural circuits. Whereas key insights into neuronal migration initially came from landmark studies identifying the genes mutated in human cortical malformations, cell biology has recently greatly advanced our understanding of how cytoskeletal proteins and molecular motors drive the morphogenic cell movements that build the developing brain. This Commentary & View reviews recent studies examining the role of the molecular motors during neuronal migration and critically examines current models of acto-myosin function in the two-step neuronal migration cycle. Given the apparent emerging diversity of neuronal sub-type cytoskeletal organizations, we propose that two approaches must be taken to resolve differences between the current migration models: the mechanisms of radial and tangential migration must be compared and the loci of tension generation, migration substrates, and sites of adhesion dynamics must be precisely examined in an integrated manner.