Dual roles of Akirin2 during Xenopus neural development

To ensure correct spatial and temporal patterning, embryos must maintain pluripotent cell populations and control when cells undergo commitment. The newly identified nucleoprotein Akirin has been shown to modulate the innate immune response through epigenetic regulation and to play important roles in other physiological processes, but its role in neural development remains unknown. Here, we show that Akirin2 is required for neural development in Xenopus and knockdown of Akirin2 expands the expression of the neural progenitor marker Sox2 and inhibits expression of the differentiated neuronal marker N-tubulin. Akirin2 acts antagonistically to Geminin, thus regulating Sox2 expression, and maintains the neural precursor state by participating in Brg1/Brm-associated factor (BAF) complex mediated by BAF53a. Additionally, Akirin2 also modulates N-tubulin expression by acting upstream of NeuroD and in parallel with Ngnr1 during terminal neuronal differentiation. Thus, our results reveal a novel model in which Akirin2 precisely coordinates and temporally controls Xenopus neural development.