An important research conducted by a team of scientists from the Biophysics Institute of the National Research Council (CNR-IBF) of Pisa and the Normal School Superior, with the support of the Center for Human Technologies of the Italian Institute of Technology of Genoa, has thrown new light on the initial stages of brain development. Their study, recently published in the magazine Stem Cell Reports, focuses on the dynamics of formation of the brain areas related to memory and other cognitive functions.
The focus of the research is the “pallium”, the outermost part of the brain in the development phase, from which fundamental structures emerge Like the cerebral cortex, the hippocampus and the entorinal cortex. These aree are crucial for learning and memory. The researchers adopted an innovative approach to study “cellular signaling routes”, that is The communication processes between the cells that guide the formation of the different sub -pallium sub -budgons during embryonic development.
Through the manipulation of embryonic stem cells and the inhibition of specific report routes through a new experimental protocol called Mibithe team managed to examine the gene expression to determine which genes were activated or deactivated. This made it possible to verify that the resulting neurons were typical of the entorinal cortex, an unprecedented discovery in the field of cell cultures.
“The results of the analyzes have shown that, at this stage, brain cells show unique connectivity models“, explains Federico Cremisi (Superior Normal School and CNR-IBF). “In fact, in culture, the entry cells have formed connections with the neurons of the region of the hippocampus distinct compared to those formed with the neurons with a cerebral cortex. Not only that: in contact with the entry neurons, hippocampal neurons spontaneously generated synchronized electrical activity, reminiscent of the brain waves observed during some cognitive processes“.
The results obtained show how, already In the initial stages of development, brain cells show unique connectivity models. In culture, these cells have formed specific connections, producing synchronized electrical activity similar to the brain waves observed during some cognitive processes.
“The functional consequences are that these early signals not only determine the identity of the cells, but also influence the formation of specific connections between the neurons and the generation of synchronized electrical activity, fundamental characteristics for the correct functioning of the brain“, concludes Di Garbo.
This suggests that The intra-cellular signaling routes play a crucial role not only in the definition
of the identity of the cells but also in the formation of neuronal connections and in coordinated electricity which is fundamental for the correct functioning of the brain.