Topic: radial glia

Radial glia (RG) are the principal neural stem cells of the embryonic brain, giving rise to neural cell types and serving as mechanical scaffold for neuron migration. Ln2PMMA is an RG biomimetic substrate, of poly methyl methacrylate with 2μm linear topography, that reproduced the surface properties and mechanical anisotropy of the embryonic RG niche. Mechanical signals from ln2PMMA induce cultured astrocytes to dedifferentiate into functional RG. However, the mechanotransducive components underlying this process are largely unknown. We used mouse cortical glial cultures grown on control and l

Exposure to early life stress (ELS) can alter neurodevelopment and is implicated in disease risk in later life, including psychiatric and behavioural disorders. The developing brain is plastic, thus ELS may affect the development trajectory of the brain by altering processes such as neurogenesis. ELS is known to impair adult hippocampal neurogenesis, however, the brain regions, cell types and underlying molecular mechanisms altered by ELS during development are unclear. Using an optogenetic zebrafish model to elevate stress hormone levels, we analysed the effects of ELS on neurogenesis during

The maternal gestational gut-microbiota has emerged as a potent modulator of neurodevelopment and increasing evidence links its alteration in the etiology of neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric conditions. The alar hypothalamus and the medial extended amygdala (EAme) are two key nodes of the social brain closely associated to these disorders. Notably, perinatal microbiota changes have been linked with morphological alterations in both brain regions. Moreover, microbiota-based interventions can modulate endogenous oxytocin levels in the hypothalamus. Hence, we hypothesized that the maternal

Microcephaly is a disease in which the head circumference and brain volume decrease. Patients with microcephaly show a range of cognitive deficits. One of the causes of microcephaly is mutations in the RTTN gene. RTTN mutations are responsible for syndromic malformations of cortical development. Here we have generated on-chip human brain organoids and 3D-hippocampal organoids to study the role of RTTN in the developing human brain.A RTTN homozygous pathogenic mutation was introduced in human embryonic stem cells using CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing. The developing control on-chip brain organoids e