Sh. Xuan et al., WINGED HELIX TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR BF-1 IS ESSENTIAL FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE CEREBRAL HEMISPHERES, Neuron, 14(6), 1995, pp. 1141-1152
We generated mice with a null mutation of the forebrain-restricted tra
nscription factor BF-1 to examine its function in brain development. H
eterozygous animals have an apparently normal phenotype. Homozygous nu
ll BF-1 mutants die at birth and have a dramatic reduction in the size
of the cerebral hemispheres. The development of the ventral telenceph
alon is more severely affected than that of the dorsal telencephalon.
Telencephalic neuroepithelial cells are specified in the BF-1 mutant,
but their proliferation is reduced. Dorsal telencephalic neuroepitheli
al cells also differentiate prematurely, leading to early depletion of
the progenitor population. These results suggest that BF-1 controls t
he morphogenesis of the telencephalon by regulating the rate of neuroe
pithelial cell proliferation and the timing of neuronal differentiatio
n.