We explored a zinc-finger transcription factor, Zic2, essential for normal brain patterning during development (Elms et al., 2003), which upon mutation shows holoprosencephaly (HPE) or cyclopia (Brown et al., 2001, Teslaa et al., 2013), a phenotype similar to cyclopamine treatment. This evidence concerns the gene ZIC2 and holoprosencephaly.