Click here to close
Hello! We notice that you are using Internet Explorer, which is not supported by Xenbase and may cause the site to display incorrectly.
We suggest using a current version of Chrome,
FireFox, or Safari.
???displayArticle.abstract???
The highly regulated expression of neurofilament (NF) proteins during axon outgrowth suggests that NFs are important for axon development, but their contribution to axon growth is unclear. Previous experiments in Xenopus laevis embryos demonstrated that antibody-induced disruption of NFs stunts axonal growth but left unresolved how the loss of NFs affects the dynamics of axon growth. In the current study, dissociated cultures were made from the spinal cords of embryos injected at the two-cell stage with an antibody to the middle molecular mass NF protein (NF-M), and time-lapse videomicroscopy was used to study early neurite outgrowth in descendants of both the injected and uninjected blastomeres. The injected antibody altered the growth dynamics primarily in long neurites (>85 microm). These neurites were initiated just as early and terminated growth no sooner than did normal ones. Rather, they spent relatively smaller fractions of time actively extending than normal. When growth occurred, it did so at the same velocity. In very young neurites, which have NFs made exclusively of peripherin, NFs were unaffected, but in the shaft of older neurites, which have NFs that contain NF-M, NFs were disrupted. Thus growth was affected only after NFs were disrupted. In contrast, the distributions of alpha-tubulin and mitochondria were unaffected; thus organelles were still transported into neurites. However, mitochondrial staining was brighter in descendants of injected blastomeres, suggesting a greater demand for energy. Together, these results suggest a model in which intra-axonal NFs facilitate elongation of long axons by making it more efficient.
Baas,
Microtubules and axonal growth.
1997, Pubmed
Baas,
Microtubules and axonal growth.
1997,
Pubmed
Beaulieu,
Formation of intermediate filament protein aggregates with disparate effects in two transgenic mouse models lacking the neurofilament light subunit.
2000,
Pubmed
Benson,
Compartmentation of alpha-internexin and neurofilament triplet proteins in cultured hippocampal neurons.
1996,
Pubmed
Carden,
Two-stage expression of neurofilament polypeptides during rat neurogenesis with early establishment of adult phosphorylation patterns.
1987,
Pubmed
Charnas,
Identification and developmental expression of a novel low molecular weight neuronal intermediate filament protein expressed in Xenopus laevis.
1992,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Chou,
New horizons in cytoskeletal dynamics: transport of intermediate filaments along microtubule tracks.
2001,
Pubmed
Collard,
Defective axonal transport in a transgenic mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
1995,
Pubmed
Dotti,
Experimentally induced alteration in the polarity of developing neurons.
,
Pubmed
Elder,
Requirement of heavy neurofilament subunit in the development of axons with large calibers.
1998,
Pubmed
Elder,
Absence of the mid-sized neurofilament subunit decreases axonal calibers, levels of light neurofilament (NF-L), and neurofilament content.
1998,
Pubmed
Eyer,
Neurofilament-deficient axons and perikaryal aggregates in viable transgenic mice expressing a neurofilament-beta-galactosidase fusion protein.
1994,
Pubmed
Eyer,
Pathogenesis of two axonopathies does not require axonal neurofilaments.
1998,
Pubmed
Fliegner,
Expression of the gene for the neuronal intermediate filament protein alpha-internexin coincides with the onset of neuronal differentiation in the developing rat nervous system.
1994,
Pubmed
Fuchs,
A structural scaffolding of intermediate filaments in health and disease.
1998,
Pubmed
Gervasi,
Xenopus laevis peripherin (XIF3) is expressed in radial glia and proliferating neural epithelial cells as well as in neurons.
2000,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Glasgow,
Molecular cloning of gefiltin (ON1): serial expression of two new neurofilament mRNAs during optic nerve regeneration.
1994,
Pubmed
Goldstone,
The expression of XIF3 in undifferentiated anterior neuroectoderm, but not in primary neurons, is induced by the neuralizing agent noggin.
1998,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Gurland,
Stable, detyrosinated microtubules function to localize vimentin intermediate filaments in fibroblasts.
1995,
Pubmed
Harrington,
"Satellite cells" and nerve terminals in the crayfish opener muscle visualized with fluorescent dyes.
1995,
Pubmed
Hoperskaya,
The development of animals homozygous for a mutation causing periodic albinism (ap) in Xenopus laevis.
1975,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Jacomy,
Disruption of type IV intermediate filament network in mice lacking the neurofilament medium and heavy subunits.
1999,
Pubmed
Jiang,
Regeneration of myelinated fiber after crush injury is retarded in sciatic nerves of mutant Japanese quails deficient in neurofilaments.
1996,
Pubmed
Khawaja,
Enhanced stability of microtubules enriched in detyrosinated tubulin is not a direct function of detyrosination level.
1988,
Pubmed
Kobayashi,
A role of microtubules during the formation of cell processes in neuronal and non-neuronal cells.
1998,
Pubmed
Leake,
Gefiltin in zebrafish embryos: sequential gene expression of two neurofilament proteins in retinal ganglion cells.
1999,
Pubmed
Levavasseur,
No requirement of alpha-internexin for nervous system development and for radial growth of axons.
1999,
Pubmed
Lin,
Neurofilaments help maintain normal morphologies and support elongation of neurites in Xenopus laevis cultured embryonic spinal cord neurons.
1995,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Lin,
Cytoskeletal reorganization underlying growth cone motility.
1994,
Pubmed
Lin,
Maturation of neurites in mixed cultures of spinal cord neurons and muscle cells from Xenopus laevis embryos followed with antibodies to neurofilament proteins.
1994,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Lin,
Effects of intermediate filament disruption on the early development of the peripheral nervous system of Xenopus laevis.
1996,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Magrassi,
Fluorescent probes that stain living nerve terminals.
1987,
Pubmed
Mitchison,
Cytoskeletal dynamics and nerve growth.
1988,
Pubmed
Nguyen,
Synaptic physiology and mitochondrial function in crayfish tonic and phasic motor neurons.
1997,
Pubmed
Phillips,
Bodian's silver method reveals molecular variation in the evolution of neurofilament proteins.
1983,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Prahlad,
Fast transport of neurofilament protein along microtubules in squid axoplasm.
2000,
Pubmed
Prahlad,
Rapid movements of vimentin on microtubule tracks: kinesin-dependent assembly of intermediate filament networks.
1998,
Pubmed
Rao,
Neurofilament-dependent radial growth of motor axons and axonal organization of neurofilaments does not require the neurofilament heavy subunit (NF-H) or its phosphorylation.
1998,
Pubmed
Roy,
Neurofilaments are transported rapidly but intermittently in axons: implications for slow axonal transport.
2000,
Pubmed
Ruthel,
Growth cones are not required for initial establishment of polarity or differential axon branch growth in cultured hippocampal neurons.
2000,
Pubmed
Shaw,
Differential expression of neurofilament triplet proteins in brain development.
1982,
Pubmed
Shea,
Selective stabilization of microtubules within the proximal region of developing axonal neurites.
1999,
Pubmed
Shea,
Neuronal intermediate filament protein alpha-internexin facilitates axonal neurite elongation in neuroblastoma cells.
1999,
Pubmed
Sheetz,
Extension of filopodia by motor-dependent actin assembly.
1992,
Pubmed
Smith,
The initiation of neurite outgrowth by sympathetic neurons grown in vitro does not depend on assembly of microtubules.
1994,
Pubmed
Smith,
Neuronal cytomechanics: the actin-based motility of growth cones.
1988,
Pubmed
Szaro,
Spatial and temporal expression of phosphorylated and non-phosphorylated forms of neurofilament proteins in the developing nervous system of Xenopus laevis.
1989,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Szaro,
Identities, antigenic determinants, and topographic distributions of neurofilament proteins in the nervous systems of adult frogs and tadpoles of Xenopus laevis.
1988,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Szaro,
Inhibition of axonal development after injection of neurofilament antibodies into a Xenopus laevis embryo.
1991,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Undamatla,
Differential expression and localization of neuronal intermediate filament proteins within newly developing neurites in dissociated cultures of Xenopus laevis embryonic spinal cord.
2001,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Wang,
Contribution of intermediate filaments to cell stiffness, stiffening, and growth.
2000,
Pubmed
Wang,
Rapid movement of axonal neurofilaments interrupted by prolonged pauses.
2000,
Pubmed
Wylie,
A conventional myosin motor drives neurite outgrowth.
1998,
Pubmed
Yabe,
Kinesin-mediated transport of neurofilament protein oligomers in growing axons.
1999,
Pubmed
Yabe,
The predominant form in which neurofilament subunits undergo axonal transport varies during axonal initiation, elongation, and maturation.
2001,
Pubmed
Yamasaki,
Defective expression of neurofilament protein subunits in hereditary hypotrophic axonopathy of quail.
1992,
Pubmed
Yamasaki,
Hereditary hypotrophic axonopathy with neurofilament deficiency in a mutant strain of the Japanese quail.
1991,
Pubmed
Yoon,
Motile properties of vimentin intermediate filament networks in living cells.
1998,
Pubmed
Yu,
Microtubule transport and assembly during axon growth.
1996,
Pubmed
Zhao,
Xefiltin, a Xenopus laevis neuronal intermediate filament protein, is expressed in actively growing optic axons during development and regeneration.
1997,
Pubmed
,
Xenbase
Zhao,
Greater number of microtubules per axon of unmyelinated fibers of mutant quails deficient in neurofilaments: possible compensation for the absence of neurofilaments.
1994,
Pubmed
Zhu,
Disruption of the NF-H gene increases axonal microtubule content and velocity of neurofilament transport: relief of axonopathy resulting from the toxin beta,beta'-iminodipropionitrile.
1998,
Pubmed
Zhu,
Delayed maturation of regenerating myelinated axons in mice lacking neurofilaments.
1997,
Pubmed
