The pleiotropic transcriptional regulator COUP-TFI plays multiple roles in neural development and disease.

Transcription factors are expressed in a dynamic fashion both in time and space during brain development, and exert their roles by activating a cascade of multiple target genes. This implies that understanding the precise function of a transcription factor becomes a challenging task. In this review, we will focus on COUP-TFI (or NR2F1), a nuclear receptor belonging to the superfamily of the steroid/thyroid hormone receptors, and considered to be one of the major transcriptional regulators orchestrating cortical arealization, cell-type specification and maturation. Recent data have unraveled the multi-faceted functions of COUP-TFI in the development of several mouse brain structures, including the neocortex, hippocampus and ganglionic eminences. Despite NR2F1 mutations and deletions in humans have been linked to a complex neurodevelopmental disease mainly associated to optic atrophy and intellectual disability, its role during the formation of the retina and optic nerve remains unclear. In light of its major influence in cortical development, we predict that its haploinsufficiency might be the cause of other cognitive diseases, not identified so far. Mouse models offer a unique opportunity of dissecting COUP-TFI function in different regions during brain assembly; hence, the importance of comparing and discussing common points linking mouse models to human patients' symptoms.