Affiliation:
1. Department of Biotechnologies and Biosciences, University of Milan-Bicocca, Piazza della Scienza 2, 20126 Milan, Italy
Abstract
The SOX2 transcription factor is a key regulator of nervous system development, and its mutation in humans leads to a rare disease characterized by severe eye defects, cognitive defects, hearing defects, abnormalities of the CNS and motor control problems. SOX2 has an essential role in neural stem cell maintenance in specific regions of the brain, and it is one of the master genes required for the generation of induced pluripotent stem cells. Sox2 is expressed in sensory organs, and this review will illustrate how it regulates the differentiation of sensory cell types required for hearing, touching, tasting and smelling in vertebrates and, in particular, in mice.
Subject
Inorganic Chemistry,Organic Chemistry,Physical and Theoretical Chemistry,Computer Science Applications,Spectroscopy,Molecular Biology,General Medicine,Catalysis