The RNA binding protein LIN28A is a stem- and progenitor marker and one of the factors necessary to induce pluripotent stem cells in vitro. LIN28A has been shown to promote the proliferative capacity of neural progenitor cells but its specific role during embryonal and postnatal brain development still remains widely unknown. A high and characteristic overexpression of LIN28A has been identified in malignant brain tumors called embryonal tumors with multilayered rosettes (ETMR). Radial glia cells of the ventricular zone are proposed as a cell of origin for those tumors.