A neuroblast is a dividing cell that will develop into a neuron.^[1] The characterisation of neuroblasts and their development in Drosophila melanogaster was widely achieved by Chris Doe, Corey Goodman and Mike Bate. In humans, neuroblasts produced by stem cells in the adult subventricular zone migrate into damaged areas after brain injuries. However, they are restricted to the subtype of small interneuron-like cells, and it is unlikely that they contribute to functional recovery of stratial circuits. ^[2]

Some sources distinguish neuroblasts from neural stem cells.^[3]

The development of neuroblasts in Drosophila

In the neuroectoderm, small clusters of equivalent cells acquire the potential to become neuroblasts, through the expression of proneural genes. From there, one particular cell from each cluster is selected to become a neuroblast, through the action of the Notch signaling pathway. Once the future neuroblast cells are selected, they delaminate, then carry on dividing for a pre-programmed number of divisions.

Neuroblasts divide asymmetrically at every stage, creating one cell that continues being a neuroblast, and one cell that becomes the Ganglion Mother Cell (GMC), which goes on to divide into 4 differentiated cells (neurons or glia). The switch from pluripotent neuroblast to differentiated cell fate is facilitated by the proteins Prospero, Numb, and Miranda. Prospero is a transcription factor that triggers differentiation. It is expressed in neuroblasts, but is kept out of the nucleus by Miranda, which tethers it to the cell basal cortex. This also results in assymetric division, where Prospero localizes in only one out of the two daughter cells. After division, Prospero enters the nucleus, and the cell it is present in becomes the GMC.

Each neuroblast goes on to create a specific sequence of cells with particular identities. This is partly based on the position of the neuroblast along the Anterior/Posterior and Dorsal/Ventral axes, and partly on a temporal sequence of transcription factors that are expressed in a specific order as neuroblasts undergo sequential divisions.

See also

• Neuroblastoma
• Neuroepithelial cell

References

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