Elucidation of the mechanism of corpus callosum formation by a novel axon guidance molecule derived from microglia

2022 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 20K21499
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Medium-sized Section 48:Biomedical structure and function and related fields
• Research Institution: Hamamatsu University School of Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Yamagishi Satoru 浜松医科大学, フォトニクス医学研究部, 教授 (40372362)
• Project Period (FY): 2020-07-30 – 2023-03-31
• Keywords: 神経軸索ガイダンス / Noggin / 脳梁欠損

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The corpus callosum is the largest commissural fiber in the human brain, connecting the left and right cerebral hemispheres and facilitating information exchange in sensation and language. The corpus callosum is formed by axonal projections from neurons in the cerebral cortex. However, the formation process of the corpus callosum is still unclear. In this research project, we identified Noggin as a novel factor essential for the formation of the corpus callosum. Noggin is a well-known inhibitor of bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs), however, its function as an axon guidance molecule has not been reported.

Free Research Field

神経生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

本研究課題の成果として、脳梁形成に必須である新たな因子としてNogginを見出した。これまで神経軸索ガイダンス分子であるNetrinやDCC、セマフォリンなどといった有名分子が知られているが、本因子はこれらに匹敵する重要な分子であることを見出した。一方、Nogginは骨形成タンパク質（BMP）阻害因子として大変有名であるが、これまでこのような機能があることは知られておらず、大変貴重な発見となった。