Asymmetric redistribution of GABA receptors during GABA gradient sensing by nerve growth cones analyzed by single quantum dot imaging.

ABSTRACT: During development of the nervous system, the tip of a growing axon, the growth cone (GC), must respond accurately to stimuli that direct its growth. This axonal navigation depends on extracellular concentration gradients of numerous guidance cues, including GABA. GCs can detect even weak directional signals, yet the mechanisms underlying this sensitivity remain unclear. Past studies in other eukaryotic chemotactic systems have pointed to the role of the spatial reorganization of the transduction pathway in their sensitive response. Here we have developed a single-molecule assay to observe individual GABA(A) receptors (GABA(A)Rs) in the plasma membrane of nerve GCs subjected to directional stimuli. We report that in the presence of an external GABA gradient GABA(A)Rs redistribute asymmetri

SUBMITTER: Bouzigues C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2040885 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature