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Updated: May 15, 2026

Direct Gene Knock-out of Axolotl Spinal Cord Neural Stem Cells via Electroporation of CAS9 Protein-gRNA Complexes
Published on: July 9, 2019
Sox2 protects neural stem cells from apoptosis via up-regulating survivin expression
Ruopeng Feng1, Shixin Zhou, Yinan Liu
1Peking University Stem Cell Research Center and Department of Cell Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Beijing, China, 100191.
Abstract:
The transcription factor Sox2 [SRY (sex-determining region Y)-box 2] is essential for the regulation of self-renewal and homoeostasis of NSCs (neural stem cells) during brain development. However, the downstream targets of Sox2 and its underlying molecular mechanism are largely unknown. In the present study, we found that Sox2 directly up-regulates the expression of survivin, which inhibits the mitochondria-dependent apoptotic pathway in NSCs. Although overexpression of Sox2 elevates survivin expression, knockdown of Sox2 results in a decrease in survivin expression, thereby initiating the mitochondria-dependent apoptosis related to caspase 9 activation. Furthermore, cell apoptosis owing to knockdown of Sox2 can be rescued by ectopically expressing survivin in NSCs as well as in the mouse brain, as demonstrated by an in utero-injection approach. In short, we have found a novel Sox2/survivin pathway that regulates NSC survival and homoeostasis, thus revealing a new mechanism of brain development, neurological degeneration and such aging-related disorders.
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