Chunk #32 — Results — Dlx1/2-/- Constitutive and Zfhx1b Conditional Mutants Have Similar Changes in Gene Expression Related to Their Defects in Interneuron Migration
Indeed, changes in Nkx2-1 and Sox6 expression were similar in the Dlx1/2-/- and Zfhx1b mutants. Nkx2-1 and Sox6 RNAs are normally expressed in similar patterns at E15.5 (Figures 6A,B,C,G,H and I); in wild type brains, both RNAs are maintained in the MGE, and in putative striatal interneurons and globus pallidus neurons, while they are downregulated in the MGE-derived cortical interneuron lineage (Nkx2.1-, Sox6low). Both Dlx1/2-/- and Zfhx1b mutants show increased numbers of Nkx2-1+ and Sox6+ cells in the striatum/LGE (asterisks in Figure 6; note: the Dlx1/2-/- mutant striatum is small due to Dlx-function in the LGE) (Anderson et al., 1997b; Yun et al., 2002b).
