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Updated: Jun 12, 2026
Analysis of Translation in the Developing Mouse Brain using Polysome Profiling
Published on: May 22, 2021
The Translation of Genetic Information in Neurodevelopment
1Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, Berlin, Germany;
Abstract:
Neurodevelopment is the transformation of genetic information into diverse neuronal phenotypes. Developmental signals initiate patterns of gene transcription and translation that drive progenitors toward a great variety of neurons and nervous systems. The potential from messenger RNA transcription is translated by the ribosome into protein, transforming genetic information into action throughout the cell. This review traces the molecular logic of neurodevelopment to the translation of the proteome and its phenotypes. It highlights emerging research in the neocortex, an evolutionarily recent brain region of complex cognition, where the ribosome is a sensor of developmental signals and translation is a regulator of neuronal fate commitment. Neuronal fates primed in the transcriptome of neural progenitors may be selectively translated, adding layers of spatial and temporal information to the execution of neuronal differentiation. This review aims to advance prior transcription-focused concepts toward their ultimate translation-driven outcomes in the molecular model of neurodevelopment and evolution.
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