The house mouse (Mus musculus) has a gestation period of 19 to 21 days. Key events in mouse brain development occur both before and after birth, beginning with peak neurogenesis of the cranial motor nuclei 9 days after conception, up to eye opening which occurs after birth and about 30 days after conception.

Stages in brain development

Days post conceptionEventReference
9cranial motor nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
10subplate -start of neurogenesisBayer and Altman (1991)
10inferior olivary nucleus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
10.5retinal ganglion cell generation - start of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
10.5superficial superior colliculus (SC) laminae- start of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
10.5dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (dLGN) - start of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
10.5Purkinje cells - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11cranial sensory nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11subplate - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11reticular nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11medial geniculate nucleus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11globus pallidus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
11.5ventral LGN - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12dLGN - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12cochlear nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12mitral cells - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12amygdala - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12subplate - end of neurogenesisBayer and Altman (1991)
12.3axons in optic stalkDunlop et al. (1997)
12.5ventral posterior nucleus (VP) and ventrobasal nucleus (VB) of the thalamus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12.5nucleus of lateral olfactory tract - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12.5claustrum - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12.5neurogenesis cortical layer VI - peak (VC) of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
12.5dLGN- end of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
12.5preoptic nucleus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13medial forebrain bundle appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
13suprachiasmatic nucleus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13optic axons at chiasm of optic tractDunlop et al. (1997)
13superior colliculus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13retinal ganglion cells - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13septal nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13entorhinal cortex - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13subiculum – peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13neurogenesis cortical layer V - peak (VC) of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13neurogenesis cortical lamina VI - end (VC) of neurogenesisCaviness (1982)
13.5raphe complex - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13.5anterior olfactory nucleus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13.5anteroventral (AV), anterodorsal (AD) and anteromedial (AM) thalamic nuclei - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13.5pontine nuclei – peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13.5parasubiculum – peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
13.5stria terminalis appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
13.5presubiculum – peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
14fasciculus retroflexus appearsFinlay and Darlington (1995)
14caudoputamen – peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
14superficial SC laminae - end of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
14fornix appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
14cones - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
14neurogenesis cortical layer V - end (VC) of neurogenesisCaviness (1982)
14.5optic axons reach dLGN and SCRobinson and Dreher (1990)
14.5anterior commissure appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
15neurogenesis cortical lamina IV - start (VC) of neurogenesisCaviness (1982)
15CA 1, CA 2 of hippocampus - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
15retinal amacrine cells - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
15hippocampal commissure appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
15neurogenesis cortical layer II /III - peak (VC) of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
15.5optic axons invade visual centersDunlop et al. (1997)
16nucleus accumbens - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
16tufted cells - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
16isles of Calleja - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
17neurogenesis cortical layer IV - peak (VC) of neurogenesisCaviness (1982)
17corpus callosum appearsAshwell et al. (1996)
17neurogenesis cortical layer IV - end (VC) of neurogenesisBayer and Altman (1991)
18.5retinal ganglion cell generation - end of neurogenesisRobinson and Dreher (1990)
19initial differentiation of layer V (S1)Finlay and Darlington (1995)
19rods - peak of neurogenesisFinlay and Darlington (1995)
21complete separation of layer V (S1)Rice et al. (1985)
22onset of barrels (S1)Rice et al. (1985)
22onset of sublayers in layer V (S1)Rice et al. (1985)
22onset of trilaminar plate (S1)Rice et al. (1985)
24onset of barrel field septa (S1)Rice et al. (1985)
25.5ipsi/contra segregation in LGN and SCRobinson and Dreher (1990)
30eye openingDunlop et al. (1997)
  • Ashwell, K.W.S.; Waite, P.M.E.; Marotte, L. (1996). "Ontogeny of the Projection Tracts and Commissural Fibres in the Forebrain of the Tammar Wallaby (Macropus eugenii): Timing in Comparison with Other Mammals". Brain, Behavior and Evolution. 47 (1). S. Karger AG: 8–22. doi:. ISSN . PMID .
  • Clancy, B., Kersh, B., Hyde, J., Darlington, R.B., Anand, K.J.S., Finlay, B.L., 2007. Web-Based Method For Translating Neurodevelopment From Laboratory Species To Humans. Neuroinformatics. 5, pp. 79–94.
  • Dunlop, S.A.; Tee, L.B.; Lund, R.D.; Beazley, L.D. (1997). "Development of primary visual projections occurs entirely postnatally in the fat-tailed dunnart, a marsupial mouse, Sminthopsis crassicaudata". J. Comp. Neurol. 384 (1): 26–40. doi:. PMID . S2CID .
  • Finlay, BL; Darlington, RB (1995-06-16). "Linked regularities in the development and evolution of mammalian brains". Science. 268 (5217): 1578–84. Bibcode:. doi:. ISSN . PMID .
  • Robinson, Stephen R.; Dreher, Bogdan (1990). "The Visual Pathways of Eutherian Mammals and Marsupials Develop According to a Common Timetable". Brain, Behavior and Evolution. 36 (4). S. Karger AG: 177–195. doi:. ISSN . PMID .

See also