Decoding Later Born Excitatory Neurons that are Located in Lower Layers of the Cerebral Cortex
Open AccessThe cerebral cortex is associated with higher level brain processes and is crucial for proper brain function. It’s mainly responsible for cognitive functions such as thought, emotion, reasoning, language, and memory. The cerebral cortex is organized into six cell layers, each of these layers contains neurons that have similar morphology, functions, gene-expression profiles, and projection patterns. Where neurons are positioned across these cortical layers is dependent on the timing of neuronal production. Since the cerebral cortex is imperative for proper brain function, its development needs to be accurately and precisely controlled to establish the correct connectivity and execute its function. Neurons in the cerebral cortex are sequentially generated in the ventricular zone of the dorsal telencephalon. These post-mitotic neurons then migrate to their destination in the cortical plate where early born neurons migrate to the lower layers of the cortex, and later-born neurons migrate over them to occupy the upper layers of the cortex. It is widely accepted that neurons generated at embryonic day 13 (E13) are located predominately in the lower layers of the cortex, specifically Layers V and VI and neurons generated at embryonic day 15 (E15) are located mainly in Layers II and III. However, there is a population of E15 neurons that do not follow this organizational pattern and are located in Layers V and VI, these neurons are thought to have a unique function and identity. This study aims to identify these excitatory lower layer neurons born in late corticogenesis, as well as identify marker genes. The late born lower layer neuron population differentially express genes associated with axon guidance and neuronal migration, specifically SLIT2. CUX1, a known upper layer marker, is another marker gene that is expressed in some of the late born lower layer neurons. This study supports that these excitatory neurons differentially express certain marker genes that leads to the conclusion that this population of excitatory lower layer neurons have a unique identity and function.
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Langston_gwu_0075M_15994.pdf | 2022-10-04 | Open Access |
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