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Pioneer axons employ Cajal’s battering ram to enter the spinal cord

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  • Ev L. Nichols

    (University of Notre Dame
    University of Notre Dame)

  • Cody J. Smith

    (University of Notre Dame
    University of Notre Dame)

Abstract

Sensory axons must traverse a spinal cord glia limitans to connect the brain with the periphery. The fundamental mechanism of how these axons enter the spinal cord is still debatable; both Ramon y Cajal’s battering ram hypothesis and a boundary cap model have been proposed. To distinguish between these hypotheses, we visualized the entry of pioneer axons into the dorsal root entry zone (DREZ) with time-lapse imaging in zebrafish. Here, we identify that DRG pioneer axons enter the DREZ before the arrival of neural crest cells at the DREZ. Instead, actin-rich invadopodia in the pioneer axon are necessary and sufficient for DREZ entry. Using photoactivable Rac1, we demonstrate cell-autonomous functioning of invasive structures in pioneer axon spinal entry. Together these data support the model that actin-rich invasion structures dynamically drive pioneer axon entry into the spinal cord, indicating that distinct pioneer and secondary events occur at the DREZ.

Suggested Citation

  • Ev L. Nichols & Cody J. Smith, 2019. "Pioneer axons employ Cajal’s battering ram to enter the spinal cord," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:natcom:v:10:y:2019:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-019-08421-9
    DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-08421-9
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