Peretz, YuvalEren, NoaKohl, AyeletHen, GideonYaniv, KarinaWeisinger, KarenCinnamon, YuvalSela-Donenfeld, Dalit2016-08-092016Peretz, Yuval, Noa Eren, Ayelet Kohl, Gideon Hen, Karina Yaniv, Karen Weisinger, Yuval Cinnamon, and Dalit Sela-Donenfeld. 2016. “A new role of hindbrain boundaries as pools of neural stem/progenitor cells regulated by Sox2.” BMC Biology 14 (1): 57. doi:10.1186/s12915-016-0277-y. http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12915-016-0277-y.1741-7007http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:27822348Background: Compartment boundaries are an essential developmental mechanism throughout evolution, designated to act as organizing centers and to regulate and localize differently fated cells. The hindbrain serves as a fascinating example for this phenomenon as its early development is devoted to the formation of repetitive rhombomeres and their well-defined boundaries in all vertebrates. Yet, the actual role of hindbrain boundaries remains unresolved, especially in amniotes. Results: Here, we report that hindbrain boundaries in the chick embryo consist of a subset of cells expressing the key neural stem cell (NSC) gene Sox2. These cells co-express other neural progenitor markers such as Transitin (the avian Nestin), GFAP, Pax6 and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan. The majority of the Sox2+ cells that reside within the boundary core are slow-dividing, whereas nearer to and within rhombomeres Sox2+ cells are largely proliferating. In vivo analyses and cell tracing experiments revealed the contribution of boundary Sox2+ cells to neurons in a ventricular-to-mantle manner within the boundaries, as well as their lateral contribution to proliferating Sox2+ cells in rhombomeres. The generation of boundary-derived neurospheres from hindbrain cultures confirmed the typical NSC behavior of boundary cells as a multipotent and self-renewing Sox2+ cell population. Inhibition of Sox2 in boundaries led to enhanced and aberrant neural differentiation together with inhibition in cell-proliferation, whereas Sox2 mis-expression attenuated neurogenesis, confirming its significant function in hindbrain neuronal organization. Conclusions: Data obtained in this study deciphers a novel role of hindbrain boundaries as repetitive pools of neural stem/progenitor cells, which provide proliferating progenitors and differentiating neurons in a Sox2-dependent regulation. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12915-016-0277-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.en-USHindbrain boundariesRhombomereSox2Neural differentiationNeural stem/progenitorsJournal Article2016-08-0910.1186/s12915-016-0277-y