The fibroblast growth factor (FGF) pathway is active in several cell types within the developing cerebellum. During early embryogenesis, FGF signalling helps to establish cerebellar territory but its function during later development is unclear. Now, on p. 2957, M. Albert Basson and colleagues report that the normal development of several cell types in the mouse cerebellum depends on tight regulation of FGF signalling by sprouty genes, which encode feedback antagonists of FGF signalling. Spry1, Spry2 and Spry4 are expressed in the developing cerebellum. The researchers show that simultaneous deletion of multiple sprouty genes results in numerous cerebellar defects, including abnormal folding of cell layers and reduced granule cell proliferation. Reducing the Fgfr1 dosage rescues these abnormalities, confirming that they are due to excess FGF signalling. Moreover, the effects of deregulated signalling on cerebellar morphology depend on the time and cell type in which sprouty genes are deleted. Thus, suggest the researchers, FGF signalling has several distinct functions and must be tightly controlled during cerebellar morphogenesis.
Sprouty limits cerebellar FGF signals
Sprouty limits cerebellar FGF signals. Development 15 July 2011; 138 (14): e1402. doi:
Download citation file:
Advertisement
Cited by
Development Journal Meeting 2023
-DevMeeting.png?versionId=4659)
We are delighted to announce that our 2023 Journal Meeting ‘Unconventional and Emerging Experimental Organisms in Cell and Developmental Biology’ will be held from 17-20 September 2023 at Wotton House, Surrey, UK. Find out more and register here.
Call for papers: Metabolic and Nutritional Control of Development and Regeneration

We are welcoming submissions for our next special issue, which will focus on metabolic and nutritional control of development and regeneration. Submission deadline: 15 May 2023.
preLights 5th Birthday webinar

preLights, our preprint highlighting service, is celebrating its 5th birthday this year. To mark the occasion, join us online on 14 March 2023 at 16:00 GMT for a discussion, led by four preLights alumni, on how to identify and navigate the challenges and opportunities while shaping your career as an early-career researcher.
Transitions in development: Daniel Grimes

Daniel Grimes’s lab studies the consequences of ciliary mutations, including left-right patterning defects and scoliosis. We interviewed Daniel to find out more about his career path, his experience of becoming a group leader and the influence of Jurassic Park.
Preprints in Development
(update)-InPreprints.png?versionId=4659)
As part of our efforts to support the use of preprints and help curate the preprint literature, we are delighted to launch a new article type: ‘In preprints’. These pieces will discuss one or more recent preprints and place them in a broader context.