The Long Journey of Pontine Nuclei Neurons : from Rhombic Lip To
REVIEW Erschienen in: Frontiers in Neural Circuits ; 11 (2017). - 33 published: 17 May 2017 http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fncir.2017.00033 doi: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00033 The Long Journey of Pontine Nuclei Neurons: From Rhombic Lip to Cortico-Ponto-Cerebellar Circuitry Claudius F. Kratochwil 1,2, Upasana Maheshwari 3,4 and Filippo M. Rijli 3,4* 1Chair in Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany, 2Zukunftskolleg, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany, 3Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland, 4University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland The pontine nuclei (PN) are the largest of the precerebellar nuclei, neuronal assemblies in the hindbrain providing principal input to the cerebellum. The PN are predominantly innervated by the cerebral cortex and project as mossy fibers to the cerebellar hemispheres. Here, we comprehensively review the development of the PN from specification to migration, nucleogenesis and circuit formation. PN neurons originate at the posterior rhombic lip and migrate tangentially crossing several rhombomere derived territories to reach their final position in ventral part of the pons. The developing PN provide a classical example of tangential neuronal migration and a study system for understanding its molecular underpinnings. We anticipate that understanding the mechanisms of PN migration and assembly will also permit a deeper understanding of the molecular and cellular basis of cortico-cerebellar circuit formation and function. Keywords: pontine gray nuclei, reticulotegmental nuclei, precerebellar system, cortico-ponto-cerebellar circuitry, Hox genes Edited by: Takao K. Hensch, INTRODUCTION Harvard University, United States Reviewed by: The basal pontine nuclei (BPN) (also known as basilar pons, pontine gray nuclei or pontine nuclei Masahiko Takada, (PN)) and the reticulotegmental nuclei (RTN) (also known as nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis) Kyoto University, Japan are located within the ventral portion of the pons.
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