Abstract
Emerging evidence suggests that new cells, including neurons, can be generated within the adult hypothalamus, suggesting the existence of a local neural stem/progenitor cell niche. Here, we identify α-tanycytes as key components of a hypothalamic niche in the adult mouse. Long-term lineage tracing in vivo using a GLAST::CreER(T2) conditional driver indicates that α-tanycytes are self-renewing cells that constitutively give rise to new tanycytes, astrocytes and sparse numbers of neurons. In vitro studies demonstrate that α-tanycytes, but not β-tanycytes or parenchymal cells, are neurospherogenic. Distinct subpopulations of α-tanycytes exist, amongst which only GFAP-positive dorsal α2-tanycytes possess stem-like neurospherogenic activity. Fgf-10 and Fgf-18 are expressed specifically within ventral tanycyte subpopulations; α-tanycytes require fibroblast growth factor signalling to maintain their proliferation ex vivo and elevated fibroblast growth factor levels lead to enhanced proliferation of α-tanycytes in vivo. Our results suggest that α-tanycytes form the critical component of a hypothalamic stem cell niche, and that local fibroblast growth factor signalling governs their proliferation.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 3049 |
Number of pages | 13 |
Journal | Nature Communications |
Volume | 4 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 27 Jun 2013 |
Keywords
- aging
- animals
- cell proliferation
- ependymoglial cells
- epidermal growth factor
- excitatory amino acid transporter 1
- fibroblast growth factor 10
- fibroblast growth factors
- glial fibrillary acidic protein
- hypothalamus
- immunohistochemistry
- integrases
- mice
- mice, inbred C57BL
- neural stem cells
- neuroglia
- signal transduction
- spheroids, cellular
- third ventricle