GSE127912
ZEB1 represses neural differentiation and cooperates with CTBP2 to dynamically regulate cell migration during neocortex development [RNA-seq]
Zinc finger E-box binding homeobox 1 (Zeb1) is a key regulator of epithelial-mesenchymal transition and cancer metastasis. Mutation of ZEB1 is associated with human diseases and defective brain development. Here we show that down-regulation of Zeb1 expression in the embryonic cortical neural progenitor cells (NPCs) is necessary for proper neuronal differentiation and migration. Overexpression of Zeb1 during neuronal differentiation when its expression normally declines blocks NPC lineage progression and disrupts multipolar-to-bipolar transition of differentiating neurons, leading to severe migration defects and subcortical heterotopia bands at the postnatal stage. We found that ZEB1 regulates a cohort of genes involved in cell differentiation and migration, including Neurod1 and Pard6b. Interestingly, interaction between ZEB1 and CTBP2 in the embryonic cerebral cortex is required for ZEB1 to elicit its effect on multipolar-to-bipolar transition but not its suppression of Neurod1. These findings provide insights into understanding the complexity of transcriptional regulation during neuronal differentiation. Overall design: mRNA profiles of purified GFP+ cells from dissociated cortical cells at E16.5 that have been electroporated in utero with CAG-IRES-ZsGreen plasmid or CAG-Zeb1-IRES-ZsGreen plasmid at E14.5, in duplicate, using BGISEQ-500