First Author | Weinstein DE | Year | 1999 |
Journal | Brain Res Dev Brain Res | Volume | 116 |
Issue | 1 | Pages | 29-39 |
PubMed ID | 10446344 | Mgi Jnum | J:56757 |
Mgi Id | MGI:1342387 | Doi | 10.1016/s0165-3806(99)00072-3 |
Citation | Weinstein DE, et al. (1999) Targeted expression of an oncogenic adaptor protein v-Crk potentiates axonal growth in dorsal root ganglia and motor neurons in vivo. Brain Res Dev Brain Res 116(1):29-39 |
abstractText | The ability of neurons to survive and to target axonal growth requires a coordinated series of cell extrinsic and intrinsic events. Previously, in a cellular model for neuronal differentiation, we showed that pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells expressing v-Crk, an oncogenic form of the SH2/SH3-containing c-Crk adaptor protein, potentiates axonal growth and prolongs nerve growth factor (NGF)-independent survival. In the present study, we have generated transgenic mice that express v-Crk in sensory, motor, and enteric neurons by placing v-crk under the control of the neuron-specific peripherin promoter. In contrast to wild-type (wt) mice, dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons explanted from post-natal day 1 transgenic mice demonstrated a reduced dependence on trophic factors for both survival and axonogenesis. v-Crk also caused an increase in the number of surviving spinal motor neurons (SMN), and interestingly, upon staining of sternomastoid muscle fibers with rhodamine conjugated alpha-bungarotoxin, many muscle fibers displayed an apparent increase in volume of motor end plates, and an increase in complexity of neuromuscular junctions (NMJ). Our data suggest that v-Crk may be involved in transducing extracellular signals to regulate cytoskeletal organization, and may act on an intrinsic determinant for axonal growth in a variety of neural types including sensory and motor neurons during development. Copyright 1999 Published by Elsevier Science B.V. |