Perinatal exposure to environmental chemicals that disrupt thyroid function can perturb testis development.

Thyroid hormones (THs) are essential for normal growth and development. Their role in skeletal and brain development is well established, with congenital hypothyroidism causing stunted growth and severe intellectual disability. THs are also important for the development of other tissues and organs, including the testis.

Hydrocephalus in Mice Is Underpinned by Changes in Ependymal Cell Physiology.

Nuclear factor one X (NFIX) is a transcription factor required for normal ependymal development. Constitutive loss of in mice () is associated with hydrocephalus and sloughing of the dorsal ependyma within the lateral ventricles. Previous studies have implicated NFIX in the transcriptional regulation of genes encoding for factors essential to ependymal development.

Deletion of NFIX results in defective progression through meiosis within the mouse testis†.

Members of the nuclear factor I (NFI) family are key regulators of stem cell biology during development, with well-documented roles for NFIA, NFIB, and NFIX in a variety of developing tissues, including brain, muscle, and lung. Given the central role these factors play in stem cell biology, we posited that they may be pivotal for spermatogonial stem cells or further developing spermatogonia during testicular development. Surprisingly, in stark contrast to other developing organ systems where NFI members are co-expressed, these NFI family members show discrete patterns of expression within the seminiferous tubules.

Genome-wide transcriptomic analysis of the forebrain of postnatal Slc13a4 mice.

Objective: Sulfation is an essential physiological process that regulates the function of a wide array of molecules involved in brain development. We have previously shown expression levels for the sulfate transporter Slc13a4 to be elevated during postnatal development, and that sulfate accumulation in the brains of Slc13a4 mice is reduced, suggesting a role for this transporter during this critical window of brain development. In order to understand the pathways regulated by cellular sulfation within the brain, we performed a bulk RNA-sequencing analysis of the forebrain of postnatal day 20 (P20) Slc13a4 heterozygous mice and wild-type litter mate controls.

Investigating cortical features of Sotos syndrome using mice heterozygous for Nsd1.

Sotos syndrome is a developmental disorder characterized by a suite of clinical features. In children, the three cardinal features of Sotos syndrome are a characteristic facial appearance, learning disability and overgrowth (height and/or head circumference > 2 SDs above average). These features are also evident in adults with this syndrome.

Common Regulatory Targets of NFIA, NFIX and NFIB during Postnatal Cerebellar Development.

Transcriptional regulation plays a central role in controlling neural stem and progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation during neurogenesis. For instance, transcription factors from the nuclear factor I (NFI) family have been shown to co-ordinate neural stem and progenitor cell differentiation within multiple regions of the embryonic nervous system, including the neocortex, hippocampus, spinal cord and cerebellum. Knockout of individual Nfi genes culminates in similar phenotypes, suggestive of common target genes for these transcription factors.

A simple, web-based repository for the management, access and analysis of micrographic images.

Microscopy is advancing at a rapid pace, enabling high-speed, high-resolution analyses to be conducted in a wide range of cellular contexts. For example, the capacity to quickly capture high-resolution images from multiple optical sections over multiple channels with confocal microscopy has allowed researchers to gain deeper understanding of tissue morphology via techniques such as three-dimensional rendering, as have more recent advances such as lattice light sheet microscopy and superresolution structured illumination microscopy. With this, though, comes the challenge of storing, curating, analysing and sharing data.

Granule neuron precursor cell proliferation is regulated by NFIX and intersectin 1 during postnatal cerebellar development.

Cerebellar granule neurons are the most numerous neuronal subtype in the central nervous system. Within the developing cerebellum, these neurons are derived from a population of progenitor cells found within the external granule layer of the cerebellar anlage, namely the cerebellar granule neuron precursors (GNPs). The timely proliferation and differentiation of these precursor cells, which, in rodents occurs predominantly in the postnatal period, is tightly controlled to ensure the normal morphogenesis of the cerebellum.

Transcriptional regulation of ependymal cell maturation within the postnatal brain.

Background: Radial glial stem cells within the developing nervous system generate a variety of post-mitotic cells, including neurons and glial cells, as well as the specialised multi-ciliated cells that line the walls of the ventricular system, the ependymal cells. Ependymal cells separate the brain parenchyma from the cerebrospinal fluid and mediate osmotic regulation, the flow of cerebrospinal fluid, and the subsequent dispersion of signalling molecules via the co-ordinated beating of their cilia. Deficits to ependymal cell development and function have been implicated in the formation of hydrocephalus, but the transcriptional mechanisms underpinning ependymal development remain poorly characterised.