Spatial constraints dictate glial territories at murine neuromuscular junctions
Autor: | Monika S. Brill, Thomas Misgeld, Jeff W. Lichtman, Yi Zuo, Wesley J. Thompson |
---|---|
Jazyk: | angličtina |
Rok vydání: | 2011 |
Předmět: |
medicine.medical_treatment
Neuromuscular Junction Cell Communication Biology Neurotransmission Neuromuscular junction Article Synapse 03 medical and health sciences Mice 0302 clinical medicine medicine Animals Axon Research Articles 030304 developmental biology 0303 health sciences integumentary system Age Factors Cell Biology Anatomy Axons medicine.anatomical_structure nervous system Peripheral nervous system Synapses Neuroglia Schwann Cells Axotomy tissues Perisynaptic space Neuroscience 030217 neurology & neurosurgery |
Zdroj: | The Journal of Cell Biology |
ISSN: | 1540-8140 0021-9525 |
Popis: | Spatial competition between glial cells causes them to partition neuromuscular junctions into discrete domains within a synapse. Schwann cells (SCs), the glial cells of the peripheral nervous system, cover synaptic terminals, allowing them to monitor and modulate neurotransmission. Disruption of glial coverage leads to axon degeneration and synapse loss. The cellular mechanisms that establish and maintain this coverage remain largely unknown. To address this, we labeled single SCs and performed time-lapse imaging experiments. Adult terminal SCs are arranged in static tile patterns, whereas young SCs dynamically intermingle. The mechanism of developmental glial segregation appears to be spatial competition, in which glial–glial and axonal–glial contacts constrain the territory of single SCs, as shown by four types of experiments: (1) laser ablation of single SCs, which led to immediate territory expansion of neighboring SCs; (2) axon removal by transection, resulting in adult SCs intermingling dynamically; (3) axotomy in mutant mice with blocked axon fragmentation in which intermingling was delayed; and (4) activity blockade, which had no immediate effects. In summary, we conclude that glial cells partition synapses by competing for perisynaptic space. |
Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
Externí odkaz: |