Nato3 is an evolutionarily conserved bHLH transcription factor expressed in the CNS of Drosophila and mouse

The evolutionarily conserved basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription fa ctors play important roles during development, Here we report the identific ation of Nato3 (nephew of atonal, fer3) orthologs in Drosophila, C. elegans , mouse, and man, all of which share a high degree of similarity within the bHLH domain. Expression analysis revealed Nato3 transcripts in the central nervous system of both fly and mouse embryos. In the fly, Dnato3 is highly expressed in 9-15 h embryos in a few ventral nerve cord cells and a subset of neurons in the brain. In mouse, (he MNato3 transcripts were detected fr om embryonic clay 7 until 5 weeks postnatally, with highest levels in the m idbrain, thalamus, hypothalamus, pons, and medulla Oblongata. In contrast t o the brain, expression in the spinal cord was limited to the embryonic sta ges. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.