XIPOU 2, a noggin-inducible gene, has direct neuralizing activity

XIPOU 2, a member of the class III POU domain family, is expressed initially in Spemann's organizer, and later, in discrete regions of the developing nervous system in Xenopus laevis. XIPOU 2 may act downstream from initial neural induction events, since it is activated by the neural inducer, noggin. To determine if XIPOU 2 participates in the early events of neurogenesis, synthetic mRNA was microinjected into specific blastomeres of the 32-cell stage embryo. Misexpression of XIPOU 2 in the epidermis causes a direct switch in cell fate from an epidermal to a neuronal phenotype. In the absence of mesoderm induction, XIPOU 2 has the ability to induce a neuronal phenotype in uncommitted ectoderm. These data demonstrate the potential of XIPOU 2 to act as a master regulator of neurogenesis.