PUBLICATION
Activity regulates programmed cell death of zebrafish Rohon-Beard neurons
- Authors
- Svoboda, K.R., Linares, A.E., and Ribera, A.B.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-010927-2
- Date
- 2001
- Source
- Development (Cambridge, England) 128(18): 3511-3520 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Novak, Alicia, Ribera, Angie, Svoboda, Kurt
- Keywords
- programmed cell death; Rohon-Beard neurons; zebrafish; neural activity; Na+ current; macho mutant
- MeSH Terms
-
- Acetylation
- Aminobenzoates/pharmacology
- Anesthetics/pharmacology
- Animals
- Apoptosis*
- Cations, Monovalent/metabolism
- Electric Conductivity
- Mutation
- Physical Stimulation
- Sodium/metabolism
- Sodium Channels/genetics
- Sodium Channels/metabolism*
- Spinal Cord/cytology
- Spinal Cord/embryology*
- Touch
- Tubulin/analogs & derivatives
- Tubulin/metabolism
- Zebrafish/embryology*
- PubMed
- 11566856 Full text @ Development
Citation
Svoboda, K.R., Linares, A.E., and Ribera, A.B. (2001) Activity regulates programmed cell death of zebrafish Rohon-Beard neurons. Development (Cambridge, England). 128(18):3511-3520.
Abstract
Programmed cell death is a normal aspect of neuronal development. Typically, twice as many neurons are generated than survive. In extreme cases, all neurons within a population disappear during embryogenesis or by early stages of postnatal development. Examples of transient neuronal populations include Cajal-Retzius cells of the cerebral cortex and Rohon-Beard cells of the spinal cord. The novel mechanisms that lead to such massive cell death have not yet been identified. We provide evidence that electrical activity regulates the cell death program of zebrafish Rohon-Beard cells. Activity was inhibited by reducing Na(+) current in Rohon-Beard cells either genetically (the macho mutation) or pharmacologically (tricaine). We examined the effects of activity block on three different reporters of cell death: DNA fragmentation, cytoskeletal rearrangements and cell body loss. Both the mao mutation and pharmacological blockade of Na(+) current reduced these signatures of the cell death program. Moreover, the mao mutation and pharmacological blockade of Na(+) current produced similar reductions in Rohon-Beard cell death. The results indicate that electrical activity provides signals that are required for the normal elimination of Rohon-Beard cells.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping