Tangential migration from the basal telencephalon to the cortex is a highly directional process, yet the mechanisms involved are poorly understood. Here we show that the basal telencephalon contains a repulsive activity for tangentially migrating cells, whereas the cerebral cortex contains an attractive activity. In vitro experiments demonstrate that the repulsive activity found in the basal telencephalon is maintained in mice deficient in both Slit1 and Slit2, suggesting that factors other than these are responsible for this activity. Correspondingly, in vivo analysis demonstrates that interneurons migrate to the cortex in the absence ofSlit1 and Slit2, or even in mice simultaneously lackingSlit1, Slit2 and netrin 1. Nevertheless, loss ofSlit2 and, even more so, Slit1 and Slit2 results in defects in the position of other specific neuronal populations within the basal telencephalon, such as the cholinergic neurons of the basal magnocellular complex. These results demonstrate that whereas Slit1and Slit2 are not necessary for tangential migration of interneurons to the cortex, these proteins regulate neuronal migration within the basal telencephalon by controlling cell positioning close to the midline.
Directional guidance of interneuron migration to the cerebral cortex relies on subcortical Slit1/2-independent repulsion and cortical attraction
Oscar Marín, Andrew S. Plump, Nuria Flames, Cristina Sánchez-Camacho, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, John L. R. Rubenstein; Directional guidance of interneuron migration to the cerebral cortex relies on subcortical Slit1/2-independent repulsion and cortical attraction. Development 1 May 2003; 130 (9): 1889–1901. doi: https://doi.org/10.1242/dev.00417
Download citation file:
Sign in
Client Account
Sign in via your institution
Sign in via ShibbolethAdvertisement
About us

Our publisher, The Company of Biologists, turns 100 this year. Read about the history of the Company and find out what Sarah Bray, our Chair of the Board of Directors, has to say.
Biologists @ 100 - join us in Liverpool in March 2025

We are excited to invite you to a unique scientific conference, celebrating the 100-year anniversary of The Company of Biologists, and bringing together our different communities. The conference will incorporate the Spring Meetings of the BSCB and the BSDB, the JEB Symposium Sensory Perception in a Changing World and a DMM programme on antimicrobial resistance. Find out more and register by 28 February 2025 to join us in March 2025 in Liverpool, UK.
Call for papers – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues

Development invites you to submit your latest research to our upcoming special issue – Lifelong Development: the Maintenance, Regeneration and Plasticity of Tissues. This issue will be coordinated by Guest Editors Meritxell Huch (Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Germany) and Mansi Srivastava (Harvard University and Museum of Comparative Zoology, USA), working alongside our team of academic Editors. Submit your articles by 15 May 2025.
A case for broadening our view of mechanism in developmental biology

In this Perspective, B. Duygu Özpolat and colleagues survey researchers on their views on what it takes to infer mechanism in developmental biology. They examine what factors shape our idea of what we mean by ‘mechanism’ and suggest a path forward that embraces a broad outlook on the diversity of studies that advance knowledge in our field.
In preprints
Did you know that Development publishes perspectives on recent preprints? These articles help our readers navigate the ever-growing preprint literature. We welcome proposals for ‘In preprints’ articles, so please do get in touch if you’d like to contribute.