Very applicable to us.
http://www.futuremedicine.com/doi/abs/10.2217/fnl.12.58
Axonal branching is essential for neurons to establish contacts to
different targets. It therefore provides the physical basis for the
integration and distribution of information within the nervous system.
During embryonic and early postnatal development, several axonal
branching modes may be distinguished that might be regulated by
activities of the growth cone or by the axon shaft. The various forms of
axonal branching are dependent on intrinsic components and are
regulated by extrinsic factors that activate specific signaling systems.
This article focuses on components implicated in cyclic guanosine
monophosphate signaling that regulate axon bifurcation – a specific form
of branching – within the spinal cord in animal models. This cascade is
composed of the ligand CNP, the guanylyl cyclase Npr2 and the cyclic
guanosine monophosphate-dependent kinase I. In the absence of one of
these components, axons of dorsal root ganglion neurons do not form
T-shaped branches when entering the spinal cord, while collateral
(interstitial) branching, another branching mode of the same type of the
neuron, is not affected. It will be important to analyze human patients
with mutations in the corresponding genes to get insights into the
pathophysiological effects of impaired sensory axon branching in the
spinal cord.
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