Repulsive cues and signalling cascades of the axon growth cone

The aim of the work described in this thesis is to investigate the nature and mechanisms of action of repellent cues for growing axons. In particular I try to resolve the controversy in the literature regarding the need for protein synthesis in the growth cone in response to external guidance cues. My results resolve the conflicting data in the literature on Semaphorin-3A signalling, where differing labs had shown that inhibiting protein synthesis either blocks or has no effect upon repulsion. They demonstrate the presence of at least two independent pathways, protein synthesisdependent mTOR activation and -independent GSK3β activation. The higher sensitivity of the synthesis-dependent pathway, and its redundancy at higher concentrations where synthesisindependent mechanisms can evoke a full collapse response alone, resolve the apparent conflict. My experiments also demonstrated that Nogo-δ20, a domain of Nogo-A, requires local protein synthesis to cause collapse. Unlike Semaphorin-3A, the dependence of collapse upon protein synthesis is concentration-independent and does not involve guanylyl cyclase, but it does share a dependence upon mTOR activity and the synthesis of RhoA, sufficient to cause collapse downstream of Semaphorin-3A. The other axon-repelling domain of Nogo-A, Nogo-66, is partially dependent upon the proteasome instead. It does not share a common pathway with Nogo-δ20, except that both are RhoA-dependent. I further attempted to identify the nature of a repulsive activity found in grey matter, ruling out a previously suggested candidate identity. Finally, I examined the phenomenon of nitric oxide-induced growth cone collapse. My experiments revealed that S-nitrosylated glutathione causes growth cone collapse through the activity of protein disulphide isomerase. This mechanism shows only a partial dependence upon soluble guanylyl cyclase, but I argue that it has total dependence upon an S-nitrosylated donor. Coupled with its apparent relation to Spalmitoylation, the reciprocal of S-nitrosylation, I propose that nitric oxide causes collapse by crossing the cell membrane to inhibit S-palmitoylation–determined localisation of proteins. These results reveal some of the many pathways involved in growth cone collapse, whose further characterisation may provide new targets for the treatment of injuries of the central nervous system.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

Doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Cambridge

Year dc:date.issued

2013

Author dc:creator

• Manns, Richard Peter Charles

• axon repulsion
• axon guidance
• neuron
• glial scar
• astrocyte
• gliosis
• spinal cord
• prosaposin
• nitrosylation
• dorsal root ganglion
• Semaphorin-3A
• astroglioma
• rapamycin
• mTOR
• Nogo-66
• amino-Nogo
• Nogo-A
• reticulon-4A
• nitric oxide
• cGMP
• proteasome
• concentration dependence
• growth cone
• quantitative immunofluorescence
• protein disulphide isomerase
• protein disulfide isomerase

Licence

• https://apollo8-f-pro.lib.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/ba0bfdaa-c5e8-424a-a2ba-d7436fdc6714/download
• https://www.rioxx.net/licenses/all-rights-reserved/

Language dc:language

eng

DOI dc:identifier.doi

https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.16341

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/245741