Dynamics of behaviour during neuronal morphogenesis in culture

Osteocalcin promotes proliferation, differentiation, and survival of PC12 cells

Involvement of the bone matrix protein osteocalcin (OC) in the development of learning and memory, and the prevention of anxiety-like behaviors in mice. However, the direct effects of OC on neurons are still unknown comparing to the mechanism how OC affects systemic energy expenditure and glucose homeostasis. In this study, we investigated the effect of OC on proliferation, differentiation, and survival of neurons using the rat pheochromocytoma cell line PC12. RT-PCR analysis for OC receptor candidates revealed that Gpr158, but not Gprc6a, mRNA was expressed in PC12 cells. The growth of PC12 cells cultured in the presence of 5-50 ng/mL of either uncarboxylated (GluOC) or carboxylated (GlaOC) OC was increased compared to cells cultured in the absence of OC. In addition, NGF-induced neurite outgrowth was enhanced by OC, and H₂O₂-induced cell death was suppressed by pretreatment with OC. All of these results were observed for both GluOC and GlaOC at comparable levels, suggesting that OC may directly affect cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival by binding to its candidate receptor, GPR158.

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor-like growth factor is a potent neurotrophic factor for PC12 cells

Heparin-binding epidermal growth factor EGF-like growth factor (HB-EGF) is a member of the epidermal growth factor family that is expressed in many cell types. We have previously reported the effects of HB-EGF on intestinal epithelial cells and endothelial cells after exposure to ischemia/reperfusion in vivo or anoxia/reoxygenation injury in vitro. However, the effect of HB-EGF on neuronal cells is largely unexplored. In this study, we examined the effect of HB-EGF on neurite outgrowth in pheochromocytoma (PC12) cells as well as the neuroprotective effect of HB-EGF on injured PC12 cells exposed to oxygen and glucose deprivation (OGD), which mimics ischemic conditions. We found that HB-EGF significantly promotes PC12 cell neurite outgrowth and that this effect was blocked by EGF receptor (EGFR) inhibition or mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) inhibition, but not by tyrosine kinase inhibition. In the face of OGD injury, HB-EGF preserves cell viability and decreases apoptosis and LDH release in PC12 cells. HB-EGF-mediated cytoprotection was abolished by EGFR inhibition and MAPK inhibition. We conclude that HB-EGF, through its interaction with the EGF receptor, activates the MAPK signaling pathway in PC12 cells under basal or injury conditions, leading to enhanced neurite outgrowth and neuroprotection against ischemic injury.

Enhanced neurite outgrowth by human neurons grown on solid three-dimensional scaffolds

Growing and differentiating human stem cells in vitro can provide access to study the molecular mechanisms that control cellular development in a manner pertinent to human embryogenesis. To fully understand such processes, however, it is important to recreate culture conditions that most closely relate to those in living tissues. As step in this direction, we have developed a robust three-dimensional cell culture system using inert highly porous solid matrices manufactured from polystyrene that can be routinely used to study the differentiation of human pluripotent stem cell-derived neurons in vitro. Neurite outgrowth was significantly enhanced when neurons were grown in a three-dimensional environment compared to traditional flat surfaces and resulted in the formation of extensive neural networks. These data suggest that the topography within the culture environment can significantly alter cell development and will therefore be an important feature when investigating the potential of human stem cells.

Morphometric and time lapse analyses of rapid-onset neurites stimulated by cycloheximide in NG108-15 cells

We previously reported that the laminin-induced outgrowth of neurites in the first 4 hr after plating ('rapid-onset neurites') is markedly stimulated by inhibitors of protein and RNA synthesis, including cycloheximide, puromycin and actinomycin D. Our original interpretation of this finding was that inhibiting protein synthesis led to metabolic changes in the cell which converged upon the intracellular pathway used by laminin to stimulate neurite formation. Alternatively, Preston et al. (1987, Proc. natn. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 84, 5247-5251) suggested that cycloheximide acts by inhibiting neurite retraction. In order to resolve these conflicting interpretations, we decided to re-examine the effects of cycloheximide using time lapse analyses of NG108-15 cells grown on laminin, together with morphometric analyses of cultures fixed at 1.5 or 3 hr after plating. Cycloheximide was found to cause both an increase in neurite initiation within the first 1.5 hr after plating, and a decrease in the occurrence of neurite retractions between 1 and 3 hr. Investigators should be aware of the effects of biosynthetic inhibitors on neurite growth, since these agents are employed widely in studies of cultured neural cells, particularly those involving receptor metabolism and phenotypic differentiation.

Irregular geometries in normal unmyelinated axons: a 3D serial EM analysis

Axons have generally been represented as straight cylinders. It is not at all uncommon for anatomists to take single cross-sections of an axonal bundle, and from the axonal diameter compute expected conduction velocities. This assumes that each cross-section represents a slice through a perfect cylinder. We have examined the three-dimensional geometry of 98 central and peripheral unmyelinated axons, using computer-assisted serial electron microscopy. These reconstructions reveal that virtually all unmyelinated axons have highly irregular axial shapes consisting of periodic varicosities. The varicosities were, without exception, filled with membranous organelles frequently including mitochondria, and have obligatory volumes similar to that described in other neurites. The mitochondria make contact with microtubules, while the other membraneous organelles were frequently found free floating in the cytoplasm. We conclude that unmyelinated axons are fundamentally varicose structures created by the presence of organelles, and that an axon's calibre is dynamic in both space and time. These irregular axonal geometries raise serious doubts about standard two dimensional morphometric analysis and suggest that electrical properties may be more heterogeneous than expected from single section data. These results also suggest that the total number of microtubules contained in an axon, rather than its single section diameter, may prove to be a more accurate predictor of properties such as conduction velocity. Finally, these results offer an explanation for a number of pathological changes that have been described in unmyelinated axons.

Progressive and spatially differentiated stability of microtubules in developing neuronal cells

The establishment of neural circuits requires both stable and plastic properties in the neuronal cytoskeleton. In this study we show that properties of stability and lability reside in microtubules and these are governed by cellular differentiation and intracellular location. After culture for 3, 7, and 14 d in nerve growth factor-containing medium, PC-12 cells were microinjected with X-rhodamine-labeled tubulin. 8-24 h later, cells were photobleached with a laser microbeam at the cell body, neurite shaft, and growth cone. Replacement of fluorescence in bleached zones was monitored by digital video microscopy. In 3-d cultures, fluorescence recovery in all regions occurred by 26 +/- 17 min. Similarly, in older cultures, complete fluorescence recovery at the cell body and growth cone occurred by 10-30 min. However, in neurite shafts, fluorescence recovery was markedly slower (71 +/- 48 min for 7-d and 201 +/- 94 min for 14-d cultures). This progressive increase in the stability of microtubules in the neurite shafts correlated with an increase of acetylated microtubules. Acetylated microtubules were present specifically in the neurite shaft and not in the regions of fast microtubule turnover, the cell body and growth cone. During the recovery of fluorescence, bleached zones did not move with respect to the cell body. We conclude that the microtubule component of the neuronal cytoskeleton is differentially dynamic but stationary.