Gdnf is mitogenic, neurotrophic, and chemoattractive to enteric neural crest cells in the embryonic colon.

ABSTRACT: Glial-derived neurotrophic factor (Gdnf) is required for morphogenesis of the enteric nervous system (ENS) and it has been shown to regulate proliferation, differentiation, and survival of cultured enteric neural crest-derived cells (ENCCs). The goal of this study was to investigate its in vivo role in the colon, the site most commonly affected by intestinal neuropathies such as Hirschsprung's disease. Gdnf activity was modulated in ovo in the distal gut of avian embryos using targeted retrovirus-mediated gene overexpression and retroviral vector-based gene silencing. We find that Gdnf has a pleiotropic effect on colonic ENCCs, promoting proliferation, inducing neuronal differentiation, and acting as a chemoattractant. Down-regulating Gdnf similarly induces premature neuronal differentiati

SUBMITTER: Mwizerwa O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3092856 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature