The Notch-1 intracellular domain is found in sub-nuclear bodies in SH-SY5Y neuroblastomas and in primary cortical neurons

Notch signalling affects most aspects of development, not least the determination of neural stem cell fate. Here, we describe the presence of the Notch-1 intracellular domain (N1(ICD)) in sub-nuclear bodies in SH-SY5Y neuroblastomas and in primary rat cortical neurons as well as several other mammalian cell lines. We also demonstrate that these N1(ICD)-positive sub-nuclear bodies are distinct from premyelocytic leukaemia (PML) and SC35 bodies. Furthermore, using Notch deletion constructs we determined that a region C-terminal of amino acid 2094 is involved in targeting the N1(ICD) into sub-nuclear bodies. These findings have ramifications for nuclear architecture and gene transcription.