Impact of transcription factor Sox8 on oligodendrocyte specification in the mouse embryonic spinal cord

Abstract

The myelin-forming oligodendrocytes of the mouse embryonic spinal cord express the three group E Sox proteins Sox8, Sox9, and Sox10. They require Sox9 for their specification from neuroepithelial cells of the ventricular zone and Sox10 for their terminal differentiation and myelination. Here, we show that during oligodendrocyte development, Sox8 is expressed after Sox9, but before Sox10. Loss of Sox8 did not impair oligodendrocyte specification by itself, but enhanced the Sox9-dependent defect. Oligodendrocyte progenitors were still generated in the Sox9-deficient spinal cord, albeit at 20-fold lower rates than in the wildtype. Combined loss of Sox8 and Sox9, in contrast, led to a near complete loss of oligodendrocytes. Other cell types such as ventricular zone cells and radial glia remained unaffected in their numbers as well as their rates of proliferation and apoptosis. Oligodendrocyte development thus relies on the differential contribution of all three group E Sox proteins at various phases.

Control of cell fate and differentiation by Sry-related high-mobility-group box (Sox) transcription factors

“…These two genes establish neuronal properties mainly redundantly by activating panneuronal gene expression. Gliogenesis (development of oligodendrocytes, astrocytes, and Schwann cells) in the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system relies on SoxE, and SoxD genes (Wegner, 2005;Stolt et al, 2003Stolt et al, , 2004Stolt et al, , and 2005. Sox9 and, to a lesser extent, Sox8 specify the gliogenic fate of neuronal precursors.…”

SoxE Proteins Are Differentially Required in Mouse Adrenal Gland Development

“…Sections (10 m) from the region in which the adrenal gland forms or had formed were used for immunohistochemistry according to standard protocols as described previously (Stolt et al, 2002(Stolt et al, , 2003. The following primary antibodies were used in various combinations: anti-Sox8 guinea pig antiserum (1:1000 dilution; Stolt et al, 2005), anti-Sox10 guinea pig antiserum (1:1000 dilution; Maka et al, 2005), affinitypurified anti-Sox10 rabbit antiserum (1:7500 dilution; Stolt et al, 2003), affinity-purified anti-Sox9 rabbit antiserum (1:2000 dilution; Stolt et al, 2003), anti-p75 rabbit antiserum (1:500 dilution; Promega. Madison, WI), anti-tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) rabbit antiserum (1:1000 dilution; BIOMOL Research Laboratories, Plymouth Meeting, PA), anti-phenylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PNMT) rabbit antiserum (1:500 dilution; Immunostar, Hudson, WI), anti-VMAT-1 rabbit antiserum (1:1000 dilution; Weihe et al, 1994), anti-3␤-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD) rabbit antiserum (1:500 dilution; gift of A. H. Payne, Stanford School of Medicine), anti-steroidogenic factor 1 (SF1) rabbit antiserum (1:1000 dilution; gift of K. Morohashi, National Institute for Basic Biology, Japan), anti-Phox2b rabbit antiserum (1:500 dilution; gift of C. Goridis, Ecole Normale Superieure, Paris), anti-␤-galactosidase rabbit antiserum (1:500 dilution; MP Biomedicals, Irvine, CA), or anti-␤-galactosidase goat antiserum (1:500 dilution; BioTrend, Kö ln, Germany).…”

Identification of Sox17 as a Transcription Factor That Regulates Oligodendrocyte Development

“…A growing list of transcription factors with roles in neural cell maturation is being identified in cells of the oligodendrocyte lineage, but only a limited subset of these factors has been functionally analyzed to define their role in OP development (Wegner, 2000(Wegner, , 2001Hudson, 2001;Stolt et al, 2002Stolt et al, , 2004Stolt et al, , 2005. Novel and potentially important oligodendrocyte transcription factors whose expression is not restricted to the oligodendrocyte lineage may have eluded detection and identification in vivo because of the cellular heterogeneity of the brain and technical difficulties in isolating selected cell types.…”