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Maheshwari U, Kraus D, Vilain N, Holwerda SJB, Cankovic V, Maiorano NA, Kohler H, Satoh D, Sigrist M, Arber S, Kratochwil CF, Di Meglio T, Ducret S, Rijli FM. Postmitotic Hoxa5 Expression Specifies Pontine Neuron Positional Identity and Input Connectivity of Cortical Afferent Subsets. Cell Rep 2021; 31:107767. [PMID: 32553152 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 03/18/2020] [Accepted: 05/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
The mammalian precerebellar pontine nucleus (PN) has a main role in relaying cortical information to the cerebellum. The molecular determinants establishing ordered connectivity patterns between cortical afferents and precerebellar neurons are largely unknown. We show that expression of Hox5 transcription factors is induced in specific subsets of postmitotic PN neurons at migration onset. Hox5 induction is achieved by response to retinoic acid signaling, resulting in Jmjd3-dependent derepression of Polycomb chromatin and 3D conformational changes. Hoxa5 drives neurons to settle posteriorly in the PN, where they are monosynaptically targeted by cortical neuron subsets mainly carrying limb somatosensation. Furthermore, Hoxa5 postmigratory ectopic expression in PN neurons is sufficient to attract cortical somatosensory inputs regardless of position and avoid visual afferents. Transcriptome analysis further suggests that Hoxa5 is involved in circuit formation. Thus, Hoxa5 coordinates postmitotic specification, migration, settling position, and sub-circuit assembly of PN neuron subsets in the cortico-cerebellar pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Upasana Maheshwari
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, 4051 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Dominik Kraus
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, 4051 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Nathalie Vilain
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sjoerd J B Holwerda
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Vanja Cankovic
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Nicola A Maiorano
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Hubertus Kohler
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Daisuke Satoh
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; Biozentrum, University of Basel, Kingelbergstrasse 70, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Markus Sigrist
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; Biozentrum, University of Basel, Kingelbergstrasse 70, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Silvia Arber
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; Biozentrum, University of Basel, Kingelbergstrasse 70, 4056 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Claudius F Kratochwil
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Thomas Di Meglio
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Sebastien Ducret
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Filippo M Rijli
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, 4051 Basel, Switzerland.
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