Developmental Neuroscience

Neural development refers to the processes that generate, shape, and reshape the nervous system of animals, from the earliest stages of embryogenesis to adulthood. The field of neural development draws on both neuroscience and developmental biology to describe and provide insight into the cellular and molecular mechanisms by which complex nervous systems develop, from the nematode and fruit fly to mammals. Defects in neural development can lead to malformations and a wide variety of sensory, motor, and cognitive impairments, including holoprosencephaly and other neurological disorders such as Rett syndrome, Down syndrome and intellectual disability.

The mammalian central nervous system (CNS) is derived from the ectoderm—the outermost tissue layer—of the embryo. In the third week of human development the neuroectoderm appears and forms the neural plate along the dorsal side of the embryo. The neural plate is the source of the majority of neurons and glial cells of the CNS. A groove forms along the long axis of the neural plate and, by week four of development, the neural plate wraps in on itself to give rise to the neural tube, which is filled with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). As the embryo develops, the anterior part of the neural tube forms a series of bulges called vesicles, which become the primary anatomical regions of the brain: the forebrain (prosencephalon), midbrain (mesencephalon), and hindbrain (rhombencephalon). These simple, early vesicles enlarge and further divide into the telencephalon (future cerebral cortex and basal ganglia), diencephalon (future thalamus and hypothalamus), mesencephalon (future colliculi), metencephalon (future pons and cerebellum), and myelencephalon (future medulla). The CSF-filled central chamber is continuous from the telencephalon to the spinal cord, and constitutes the developing ventricular system of the CNS. Because the neural tube gives rise to the brain and spinal cord any mutations at this stage in development can lead to lethal deformities like anencephaly or lifelong disabilities like spina bifida. During this time, the walls of the neural tube contain neural stem cells, which drive brain growth as they divide many times. Gradually some of the cells stop dividing and differentiate into neurons and glial cells, which are the main cellular components of the CNS. The newly generated neurons migrate to different parts of the developing brain to self-organize into different brain structures. Once the neurons have reached their regional positions, they extend axons and dendrites, which allow them to communicate with other neurons via synapses. Synaptic communication between neurons leads to the establishment of functional neural circuits that mediate sensory and motor processing, and underlie behavior.

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