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Updated: Apr 21, 2026

Real-time Bioluminescence Imaging of Notch Signaling Dynamics during Murine Neurogenesis
Published on: December 12, 2019
Notch activity in neural progenitors coordinates cytokinesis and asymmetric differentiation
Filipe Pinto-Teixeira1, Claude Desplan2
1Center for Genomics and Systems Biology, New York University Abu Dhabi, P.O. Box 129188, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
Abstract:
Asymmetric division of neural progenitor cells is a crucial event in the generation of neuronal diversity and involves the segregation of distinct proteins into daughter cells, thereby promoting unique differentiation programs. Although it was known that Notch signaling acts postmitotically to orchestrate differentiation of daughter cells from asymmetrically dividing precursor cells, Bhat reported a previously uncharacterized role for Notch that occurs before cell division to promote the asymmetric localization of the protein Numb and the positioning of the cleavage furrow. Numb is an inhibitor of Notch activity; thus, this mechanism forms a regulatory feedback loop to control asymmetric cytokinesis and differentiation.
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