Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) induces dendritic targeting of BDNF and tyrosine kinase B mRNAs in hippocampal neurons through a phosphatidylinositol-3 kinase-dependent pathway.

This study aims to understand the mechanisms of dendritic targeting of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and tyrosine kinase B (TrkB) mRNAs. We show that brief depolarizations are sufficient to induce accumulation of BDNF and TrkB mRNAs in dendrites of hippocampal neurons. Endogenous BDNF, secreted during the KCl stimulation, contributes significantly to the dendritic accumulation of BDNF-TrkB mRNAs. In the absence of depolarization, 1 min pulses of exogenous BDNF are sufficient to induce dendritic accumulation of BDNF-TrkB mRNAs. After binding to TrkB, BDNF exerts this action by activating a PI-3 kinase-dependent pathway. The accumulation of dendritic mRNA by BDNF is not mediated by BDNF-induced neurotransmitter release. Because most hippocampal neurons coexpress BDNF and TrkB receptors, these results show that the subcellular distribution of BDNF-TrkB mRNAs is under the control of an autocrine-paracrine BDNF-TrkB-dependent loop.