Neurogenic Differentiation 1 (NEUROD1)

Basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proteins are transcription factors involved in determining cell type during development. Lee et al. (1995) described a bHLH protein, termed NeuroD (for """neurogenic differentiation""") by them, that functions during neurogenesis. They cloned genes encoding the mouse and Xenopus NeuroD homologs and showed that they are expressed transiently in a subset of neurons in the central and peripheral nervous systems at the time of their terminal differentiation. They also found that ectopic expression of NeuroD in Xenopus embryos causes conversion of epithelial cells into neurons.The predicted 357-amino acid polypeptide shares 97% identity with the mouse gene (100% identity in the bHLH region).