Lineage restriction of the myogenic conversion factor myf-5 in the brain

myf-5 is one of four transcription factors belonging to the MyoD family that play key roles in skeletal muscle determination and differentiation. We have shown earlier by gene targeting nlacZ into the murine myf-5 locus that myf-5 expression in the developing mouse embryo is closely associated with the restriction of precursor muscle cells to the myogenic lineage. We now identify unexpected expression of this myogenic factor in subdomains of the brain. myf-5 expression begins to be detected at embryonic day 8 (E8) in the mesencephalon and coincides with the appearance of the first differentiated neurons; expression in the secondary prosencephalon initiates at E10 and is confined to the ventral domain of prosomere p4, later becoming restricted to the posterior hypothalamus. This expression is observed throughout embryogenesis. No other member of the MyoD family is detected in these regions, consistent with the lack of myogenic conversion. Furthermore, embryonic stem cells expressing the myf-5/nlacZ allele yield both skeletal muscle and neuronal cells when differentiated in vitro. These observations raise questions about the role of myf-5 in neurogenesis as well as myogenesis, and introduce a new lineage marker for the developing brain.