Shalizi Aryaman K, Bonni Azad
Department of Pathology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Curr Top Dev Biol. 2005;69:239-66. doi: 10.1016/S0070-2153(05)69009-6.
The myocyte enhancer factor 2 (MEF2) transcription factors were originally identified, as their family name implies, on the basis of their role in muscle differentiation. Expression of the four MEF2 proteins, however, is not restricted to contractile tissue. While it has been known for more than a decade that MEF2s are abundantly expressed in neurons, their contributions to the development and function of the nervous system are only now being elucidated. Interestingly, the emerging mechanisms regulating MEF2 in neurons have significant parallels with the regulatory mechanisms in muscle, despite the quite distinct identities of these two electrically excitable tissues. The goal of this chapter is to provide an introduction to those regulatory mechanisms and their consequences for brain development. As such, we first provide an overview of MEF2 itself and its expression within the central nervous system. The second part of this chapter describes the signaling molecules that regulate MEF2 transcriptional activity and their contributions to MEF2 function. The third part of this chapter discusses the role of MEF2 proteins in the developing nervous system and compares the analogous functions of this protein family in muscle and brain.
正如其家族名称所暗示的那样，肌细胞增强因子2（MEF2）转录因子最初是基于它们在肌肉分化中的作用而被鉴定出来的。然而，四种MEF2蛋白的表达并不局限于收缩组织。虽然十多年来人们已经知道MEF2在神经元中大量表达，但它们对神经系统发育和功能的贡献直到现在才被阐明。有趣的是，尽管这两种电兴奋性组织的特性截然不同，但在神经元中调节MEF2的新出现的机制与肌肉中的调节机制有显著的相似之处。本章的目的是介绍这些调节机制及其对大脑发育的影响。因此，我们首先概述MEF2本身及其在中枢神经系统中的表达。本章的第二部分描述了调节MEF2转录活性的信号分子及其对MEF2功能的贡献。本章的第三部分讨论了MEF2蛋白在发育中的神经系统中的作用，并比较了该蛋白家族在肌肉和大脑中的类似功能。
