Nestin-cre transgenic mice have been widely used to direct recombination to neural stem cells (NSCs) and intermediate neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Here we report that a readily utilized, and the only commercially available, Nestin-cre line is insufficient for directing recombination in early embryonic NSCs and NPCs. Analysis of recombination efficiency in multiple cre-dependent reporters and...

Whereas the cellular basis of the hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) niche in the bone marrow has been characterized, the nature of the fetal liver niche is not yet elucidated. We show that Nestin(+)NG2(+) pericytes associate with portal vessels, forming a niche promoting HSC expansion. Nestin(+)NG2(+) cells and HSCs scale during development with the fractal branching patterns of portal vessels, tri...

Neurons and glial cells in the developing brain arise from neural progenitor cells (NPCs). Nestin, an intermediate filament protein, is thought to be expressed exclusively by NPCs in the normal brain, and is replaced by the expression of proteins specific for neurons or glia in differentiated cells. Nestin expressing NPCs are found in the adult brain in the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the late...

Atrial (ANP) and C-type (CNP) natriuretic peptide generate physiological effects via selective activation of two closely related membrane receptors with guanylyl cyclase (GC) activity, known as GC-A and GC-B. As yet, however, the discrete roles for ANP/GC-A vs. CNP/GC-B signaling in many mammalian tissues are still poorly understood. We here used receptor affinity labeling and GC assays to char...

Key questions remain regarding the processes governing gliogenesis following central nervous system injury that are critical to understanding both beneficial brain repair mechanisms and any long-term detrimental effects, including increased risk of seizures. We have used cortical injury produced by intracranial electrodes (ICEs) to study the time-course and localization of gliosis and gliogenes...

The early postnatal period is a unique time of brain development, as diminishing amounts of neurogenesis coexist with waves of gliogenesis. Understanding the molecular regulation of early postnatal gliogenesis may provide clues to normal and pathological embryonic brain ontogeny, particularly in regards to the development of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. Cyclin dependent kinase 5 (Cdk5) cont...

Malignant melanoma is the most lethal form of skin cancer. Y-box binding protein 1 (YB-1) plays a prominent role in mediating metastatic behavior by promoting epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT). Migratory cells exhibit two major migration modes: elongated mesenchymal or rounded amoeboid. Using A375 cell line and YB-1 knock-out model, we aimed to elucidate biochemical biomechanical chang...

Multipotential stem cells throughout the developing central nervous system have common properties. Among these is expression of the intermediate filament protein nestin and the brain fatty acid binding protein (B-FABP). To determine if common mechanisms control transcription in CNS stem cells, the regulatory elements of these two genes were mapped in transgenic mice. A 257 basepair enhancer of ...

Neural precursor cells contribute to adult neurogenesis and to limited attempts of brain repair after injury. Here we report that in a murine experimental glioblastoma model, endogenous neural precursors migrate from the subventricular zone toward the tumor and surround it. The association of endogenous precursors with syngenic tumor grafts was observed, after injecting red fluorescent protein-...