The Hippo pathway and its effector, the transcription coactivator YAP are identified to control organ size during embryonic development and cancer formation in various invertebrates and vertebrates. YAP also plays important roles in multiple stem cell types. Interestingly, we find that YAP regulates cell proliferation and differentiation of neural progenitors and is required for neuron production in the mouse cerebral cortex. Since accurate balance between cell proliferation and cell differentiation is critical to ensure correct tissue homeostasis, we aim to study the role of YAP in adult neural stem cells and its interacting signaling pathways with Yap conditional knockout mice.