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Development

Having the NRG to migrate

Nature Reviews Neuroscience volume 5, page 897 (2004)Cite this article

There are three main isoforms of NRG1: Types I and II (collectively known as NRG1-Ig), which are secreted, and Type III (also known as NRG1-CRD), which is membrane-bound. Flames et al. showed that Nrg1-CRD mRNA is expressed in a 'corridor' through the lateral ganglionic eminence that corresponds to the migration pathway of cortical interneurons. When faced with the choice of migrating on Nrg1-CRD-expressing or -non-expressing cells, MGE cells were around twice as likely to choose the Nrg1-CRD-expressing cells, and the authors propose that NRG1-CRD provides a permissive substrate for interneuron migration.

The expression pattern of NRG1-Ig is consistent with the idea that it functions as a diffusible chemoattractant. At the developmental stage when interneurons first begin to enter the cortex, Nrg1-Ig is expressed at higher levels in more lateral cortical regions, but its expression spreads medially as development proceeds, mirroring the advancing front of migrating interneurons. Flames et al. showed that MGE cells were attracted towards a source of NRG1-Ig in culture, and in brain slices, a graft of NRG1-Ig-expressing cells in the ventrolateral telencephalon could attract MGE cells and divert them from their usual migration course.

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References

ORIGINAL RESEARCH PAPER

  1. Flames, N. et al. Short- and long-range attraction of cortical GABAergic interneurons by Neuregulin-1. Neuron 44, 251–261 (2004)

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FURTHER READING

  1. Marín, O. & Rubenstein, J. L. R. A long, remarkable journey: tangential migration in the telencephalon. Nature Rev. Neurosci. 2, 780–790 (2001)

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Authors
  1. Heather Wood
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Wood, H. Having the NRG to migrate. Nat Rev Neurosci 5, 897 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn1570

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