PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - van Bruggen, Rebekah
AU  - Manzanet Freyre, Karla
AU  - Vasanthkumar, Sangeetha
AU  - Wang, Mi
AU  - Tan, Qiumin
TI  - Partial Deletion of <em>Cxcl12</em> from Hippocampal Cajal–Retzius Cells Does Not Disrupt Dentate Gyrus Development or Neurobehaviors
AID  - 10.1523/ENEURO.0245-25.2025
DP  - 2026 Jan 01
TA  - eneuro
PG  - ENEURO.0245-25.2025
VI  - 13
IP  - 1
4099  - http://www.eneuro.org/content/13/1/ENEURO.0245-25.2025.short
4100  - http://www.eneuro.org/content/13/1/ENEURO.0245-25.2025.full
SO  - eNeuro2026 Jan 01; 13
AB  - The chemokine CXCL12 plays critical roles in the development of the hippocampus dentate gyrus during both embryogenesis and adulthood. While multiple cell types in the hippocampus express Cxcl12, their individual contributions to the dentate gyrus development and function remain unclear. Here, using Cxcl12 reporter mice of both sexes, we characterize Cxcl12 expression in Cajal–Retzius (CR) cells—neurons that guide dentate gyrus morphogenesis and influence hippocampal circuitry. We show that CR cells prominently express Cxcl12 during early postnatal development, although both the number and proportion of Cxcl12-expressing CR cells decline significantly in adulthood. Notably, partial deletion of Cxcl12 from hippocampal CR cells in male and female mice does not result in detectable changes in dentate gyrus architecture, adult neurogenesis, or specific behaviors. These findings suggest that CR cell-derived CXCL12 may be less critical for dentate gyrus development than previously assumed and underscore the complexity and potential redundancy of CXCL12 signaling in the hippocampus.