Promotion of differentiation in developing mouse cerebellar granule cells by a cell adhesion molecule BT-IgSF

Publication date: Available online 31 August 2018Source: Neuroscience LettersAuthor(s): Kasumi Higashine, Kei Hashimoto, Emi Tsujimoto, Yuko Oishi, Yokichi Hayashi, Yasunori MiyamotoABSTRACTBrain- and testis-specific immunoglobulin superfamily (BT-IgSF), one of the immunoglobulin superfamily proteins, is a cell adhesion molecule, expressed in the developing cerebellum. We hypothesized that BT-IgSF might have some function in the development of cerebellum, although the physiological roles of BT-IgSF in the cerebellum remain unclear. To investigate the role of BT-IgSF in the development of mouse cerebellum, we first determined the presence of BT-IgSF in the newborn mouse cerebellum; its expression level was found to be much higher than in the adults. BT-IgSF was abundantly expressed in the molecular layer, where cerebellar granule cell precursors (CGCPs) are in the differentiation stage during migration. We subsequently analyzed the effects of BT-IgSF-knockdown and -overexpression on the proliferation and differentiation of primary cultured CGCPs. BT-IgSF suppressed the proliferation of CGCPs, and promoted their differentiation into cerebellar granule cells. Taken together, our results suggested that BT-IgSF is one of the important cell adhesion molecules that regulate the development of mouse cerebellum.
Source: Neuroscience Letters - Category: Neuroscience Source Type: research