Modeling Axonal Defects in Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia with Human Pluripotent Stem Cells.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Cortical motor neurons, also known as upper motor neurons, are large projection neurons whose axons convey signals to lower motor neurons to control the muscle movements. Degeneration of cortical motor neuron axons is implicated in several debilitating disorders, including hereditary spastic paraplegia (HSP) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Since the discovery of the first HSP gene, SPAST that encodes spastin, over 70 distinct genetic loci associated with HSP have been identified. How the mutations of these functionally diverse genes result in axonal degeneration and why certain axons are affected in HSP remains largely unknown. The development of induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC) technology has provided researchers an excellent resource to generate pat

SUBMITTER: Denton KR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5147749 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature