Expression of cellular retinoic acid binding protein in the developing nervous system of mouse embryo

The expression of cellular retinoic acid binding protein, CRABP, in developing mouse embryos was immunohistochemically analyzed. Differentiating young neurons and neuronal fibers in the myelencephalon, metencephalon, mesencephalon and spinal cord in 10.5- and 12.5-day embryos showed intense expression of CRABP, but undifferentiated cells in the neural tube did not. Neural tissue in 16.5-day embryos expressed less amount of binding protein than the tissues of the younger stages. These expressions of CRABP suggest that retinoic acid participates in neurogenesis at early developmental stages via expression of cellular retinoic acid binding protein.