In vivo imaging of cortical interneurons migrating in the intermediate/subventricular zones

Pyramidal neurons form active, transient, multilayered circuits perturbed by autism-associated mutations at the inception of neocortex

Cortical circuits are composed predominantly of pyramidal-to-pyramidal neuron connections, yet their assembly during embryonic development is not well understood. We show that mouse embryonic Rbp4-Cre cortical neurons, transcriptomically closest to layer 5 pyramidal neurons, display two phases of circuit assembly in vivo. At E14.5, they form a multi-layered circuit motif, composed of only embryonic near-projecting-type neurons. By E17.5, this transitions to a second motif involving all three embryonic types, analogous to the three adult layer 5 types. In vivo patch clamp recordings and two-photon calcium imaging of embryonic Rbp4-Cre neurons reveal active somas and neurites, tetrodotoxin-sensitive voltage-gated conductances, and functional glutamatergic synapses, from E14.5 onwards. Embryonic Rbp4-Cre neurons strongly express autism-associated genes and perturbing these genes interferes with the switch between the two motifs. Hence, pyramidal neurons form active, transient, multi-layered pyramidal-to-pyramidal circuits at the inception of neocortex, and studying these circuits could yield insights into the etiology of autism.

Erratic and blood vessel-guided migration of astrocyte progenitors in the cerebral cortex

Astrocytes are one of the most abundant cell types in the mammalian brain. They play essential roles in synapse formation, maturation, and elimination. However, how astrocytes migrate into the gray matter to accomplish these processes is poorly understood. Here, we show that, by combinational analyses of in vitro and in vivo time-lapse observations and lineage traces, astrocyte progenitors move rapidly and irregularly within the developing cortex, which we call erratic migration. Astrocyte progenitors also adopt blood vessel-guided migration. These highly motile progenitors are generated in the restricted prenatal stages and differentiate into protoplasmic astrocytes in the gray matter, whereas postnatally generated progenitors do not move extensively and differentiate into fibrous astrocytes in the white matter. We found Cxcr4/7, and integrin β1 regulate the blood vessel-guided migration, and their functional blocking disrupts their positioning. This study provides insight into astrocyte development and may contribute to understanding the pathogenesis caused by their defects.

Two-photon microscopic observation of cell-production dynamics in the developing mammalian neocortex in utero

Morphogenesis and organ development should be understood based on a thorough description of cellular dynamics. Recent studies have explored the dynamic behaviors of mammalian neural progenitor cells (NPCs) using slice cultures in which three‐dimensional systems conserve in vivo‐like environments to a considerable degree. However, live observation of NPCs existing truly in vivo, as has long been performed for zebrafish NPCs, has yet to be established in mammals. Here, we performed intravital two‐photon microscopic observation of NPCs in the developing cerebral cortex of H2B‐EGFP or Fucci transgenic mice in utero. Fetuses in the uterine sac were immobilized using several devices and were observed through a window made in the uterine wall and the amniotic membrane while monitoring blood circulation. Clear visibility was obtained to the level of 300 μm from the scalp surface of the fetus, which enabled us to quantitatively assess NPC behaviors, such as division and interkinetic nuclear migration, within a neuroepithelial structure called the ventricular zone at embryonic day (E) 13 and E14. In fetuses undergoing healthy monitoring in utero for 60 min, the frequency of mitoses observed at the apical surface was similar to those observed in slice cultures and in freshly fixed in vivo specimens. Although the rate and duration of successful in utero observations are still limited (33% for ≥10 min and 14% for 60 min), further improvements based on this study will facilitate future understanding of how organogenetic cellular behaviors occur or are pathologically influenced by the systemic maternal condition and/or maternal‐fetal relationships.

In vivo two-photon imaging of the embryonic cortex reveals spontaneous ketamine-sensitive calcium activity

Prior to sensory experience spontaneous activity appears to play a fundamental role in the correct formation of prominent functional features of different cortical regions. The use of anaesthesia during pregnancy such as ketamine is largely considered to negatively affect neuronal development by interfering with synaptic transmission. Interestingly, the characteristics of spontaneous activity as well as the acute functional effects of maternal anaesthesia remain largely untested in the embryonic cortex in vivo. In the present work, we performed in vivo imaging of spontaneous calcium activity and cell motility in the marginal zone of the cortex of E14-15 embryos connected to the mother. We made use of a preparation where the blood circulation from the mother through the umbilical cord is preserved and fluctuations in intracellular calcium in the embryonic frontal cortex are acquired using two-photon imaging. We found that spontaneous transients were either sporadic or correlated in clusters of neuronal ensembles at this age. These events were not sensitive to maternal isoflurane anaesthesia but were strongly inhibited by acute in situ or maternal application of low concentration of the anaesthetic ketamine (a non-competitive antagonist of NMDA receptors). Moreover, simultaneous imaging of cell motility revealed a correlated strong sensitivity to ketamine. These results show that anaesthetic compounds can differ significantly in their impact on spontaneous early cortical activity as well as motility of cells in the marginal zone. The effects found in this study may be relevant in the etiology of heightened vulnerability to cerebral dysfunction associated with the use of ketamine during pregnancy.