AUTHOR=Nomura Tadashi , Gotoh Hitoshi , Kiyonari Hiroshi , Ono Katsuhiko 

TITLE=Cell Type-Specific Transcriptional Control of Gsk3β in the Developing Mammalian Neocortex

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Neuroscience

VOLUME=16

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnins.2022.811689

DOI=10.3389/fnins.2022.811689

ISSN=1662-453X

ABSTRACT=<p>Temporal control of neurogenesis is central for the development and evolution of species-specific brain architectures. The balance between progenitor expansion and neuronal differentiation is tightly coordinated by cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic cues. Wnt signaling plays pivotal roles in the proliferation and differentiation of neural progenitors in a temporal manner. However, regulatory mechanisms that adjust intracellular signaling amplitudes according to cell fate progression remain to be elucidated. Here, we report the transcriptional controls of <italic>Gsk3</italic>β, a critical regulator of Wnt signaling, in the developing mouse neocortex. <italic>Gsk3</italic>β expression was higher in ventricular neural progenitors, while it gradually declined in differentiated neurons. We identified active <italic>cis</italic>-regulatory module (CRM) of <italic>Gsk3</italic>β that responded to cell type-specific transcription factors, such as Sox2, Sox9, and Neurogenin2. Furthermore, we found extensive conservation of the CRM among mammals but not in non-mammalian amniotes. Our data suggest that a mammalian-specific CRM drives the cell type-specific activity of <italic>Gsk3</italic>β to fine tune Wnt signaling, which contributes to the tight control of neurogenesis during neocortical development.</p>