Radial glia require PDGFD-PDGFR$β$ signalling in human but not mouse neocortex. Lui, J. H, Nowakowski, T. J, Pollen, A. A, Javaherian, A., Kriegstein, A. R, & Oldham, M. C Nature, 515(7526):264–268, November, 2014.
abstract   bibtex   
Evolutionary expansion of the human neocortex underlies many of our unique mental abilities. This expansion has been attributed to the increased proliferative potential of radial glia (RG; neural stem cells) and their subventricular dispersion from the periventricular niche during neocortical development. Such adaptations may have evolved through gene expression changes in RG. However, whether or how RG gene expression varies between humans and other species is unknown. Here we show that the transcriptional profiles of human and mouse neocortical RG are broadly conserved during neurogenesis, yet diverge for specific signalling pathways. By analysing differential gene co-expression relationships between the species, we demonstrate that the growth factor PDGFD is specifically expressed by RG in human, but not mouse, corticogenesis. We also show that the expression domain of PDGFR$β$, the cognate receptor for PDGFD, is evolutionarily divergent, with high expression in the germinal region of dorsal human neocortex but not in the mouse. Pharmacological inhibition of PDGFD-PDGFR$β$ signalling in slice culture prevents normal cell cycle progression of neocortical RG in human, but not mouse. Conversely, injection of recombinant PDGFD or ectopic expression of constitutively active PDGFR$β$ in developing mouse neocortex increases the proportion of RG and their subventricular dispersion. These findings highlight the requirement of PDGFD-PDGFR$β$ signalling for human neocortical development and suggest that local production of growth factors by RG supports the expanded germinal region and progenitor heterogeneity of species with large brains.
@ARTICLE{Lui2014-qa,
  title    = "Radial glia require {PDGFD-PDGFR$\beta$} signalling in human but
              not mouse neocortex",
  author   = "Lui, Jan H and Nowakowski, Tomasz J and Pollen, Alex A and
              Javaherian, Ashkan and Kriegstein, Arnold R and Oldham, Michael C",
  abstract = "Evolutionary expansion of the human neocortex underlies many of
              our unique mental abilities. This expansion has been attributed
              to the increased proliferative potential of radial glia (RG;
              neural stem cells) and their subventricular dispersion from the
              periventricular niche during neocortical development. Such
              adaptations may have evolved through gene expression changes in
              RG. However, whether or how RG gene expression varies between
              humans and other species is unknown. Here we show that the
              transcriptional profiles of human and mouse neocortical RG are
              broadly conserved during neurogenesis, yet diverge for specific
              signalling pathways. By analysing differential gene co-expression
              relationships between the species, we demonstrate that the growth
              factor PDGFD is specifically expressed by RG in human, but not
              mouse, corticogenesis. We also show that the expression domain of
              PDGFR$\beta$, the cognate receptor for PDGFD, is evolutionarily
              divergent, with high expression in the germinal region of dorsal
              human neocortex but not in the mouse. Pharmacological inhibition
              of PDGFD-PDGFR$\beta$ signalling in slice culture prevents normal
              cell cycle progression of neocortical RG in human, but not mouse.
              Conversely, injection of recombinant PDGFD or ectopic expression
              of constitutively active PDGFR$\beta$ in developing mouse
              neocortex increases the proportion of RG and their subventricular
              dispersion. These findings highlight the requirement of
              PDGFD-PDGFR$\beta$ signalling for human neocortical development
              and suggest that local production of growth factors by RG
              supports the expanded germinal region and progenitor
              heterogeneity of species with large brains.",
  journal  = "Nature",
  volume   =  515,
  number   =  7526,
  pages    = "264--268",
  month    =  nov,
  year     =  2014,
  language = "en"
}

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