Tension-driven axon assembly: a possible mechanism

Harrison described the second phase of growth in which axons, having reached their target tissue while the axon is very short, increase their length coordinate with surrounding tissues—referring to it as “passive stretching” (Harrison, 1935). Embryonic (E15) rat dorsal root ganglia were explanted on...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Frontiers in cellular neuroscience 2015-08, Vol.9, p.316-316
Main Authors: Heidemann, Steven R, Bray, Dennis
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Actin
Axonal elongation
Axons
Biomechanics
Cell adhesion & migration
cytoskeleton dynamics
Cytosol
Dorsal root ganglia
Embryos
Filaments
Intermediate filaments
Mechanotransduction, Cellular
Microtubules
neural development
Neurons
Neuroscience
Physiology
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Summary:Harrison described the second phase of growth in which axons, having reached their target tissue while the axon is very short, increase their length coordinate with surrounding tissues—referring to it as “passive stretching” (Harrison, 1935). Embryonic (E15) rat dorsal root ganglia were explanted onto two overlapping membranes that were then gradually separated by a stepper motor, i.e., placed under continuous mechanical tension, such that the axons were elongating in the space between the membranes. From a purely geometric standpoint, a nerve cell that produces 1 mm of axon in a day (a typical rate in a towing experiment) increases its length by several orders of magnitude more than its radius making longitudinal addition of material the dominant factor in response to pulling. [...]longitudinal elements such as microtubules, intermediate filaments, and actin filaments, should be selectively up-regulated in a towed neuron, to a much greater degree than components of the cytosol or nucleus. [...]since the bulk of this synthesis will take place in the cell soma, we also anticipate a major increase in the transport of these proteins and their assembly at the site of growth.
ISSN:1662-5102
1662-5102
DOI:10.3389/fncel.2015.00316