Expression analysis of an evolutionary conserved metallophosphodiesterase gene,Mpped1, in the normal and β‐catenin–deficient malformed dorsal telencephalon

We report the expression of the mouse Mpped1 in the telencephalon through embryonic stages to adulthood. Using Northern blotting analysis and RNA in situ hybridization (ISH), our data show that Mpped1 is specifically expressed in the brain and is enriched in the cortical plate of the developing telencephalon. Postnatally, the expression of Mpped1 is reduced in the cerebral cortex relative to its levels in the embryonic dorsal telencephalon. Also, Mpped1 expression is sustained in the hippocampal CA1 region. Examination of the expression of Mpped1 and other cortical layer markers by ISH in a malformed β‐catenin null dorsal telencephalon show that the Mpped1‐, Cux2‐, and Rorβ‐expressing superficial cortical layers are reduced and form patchy patterns, and the Tbr‐1‐expressing deep‐layer neurons are incorrectly located on superficial layers, indicative of a migration defect of cortical neurons in the absence of β‐catenin. Developmental Dynamics 239:1797–1806, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.