Rebelo Sandra, Chen Zhou-Feng, Anderson David J, Lima Deolinda
Laboratory of Molecular Cell Biology, University of Oporto, Porto, Portugal.
Mol Cell Neurosci. 2006 Nov;33(3):236-46. doi: 10.1016/j.mcn.2006.07.013. Epub 2006 Sep 15.
During development, dorsal root ganglia (DRG) neurons differentiate in various subpopulations, nociceptive neurons belonging in the small-diameter class. This study addresses the role played by DRG11, a transcription factor expressed in the spinal area of projection of small-diameter DRG neurons, in the development of the primary afferent system. The various subclasses of DRG neurons were compared between wild-type and Drg11(-/-) mice at embryonic and postnatal life. In Drg11(-/-) mice, numbers of small peptidergic and non-peptidergic DRG neurons were decreased at P7 concomitant with abnormal cell death. Innervation by small DRG neurons was impaired in cutaneous, visceral and deep tissues. Large DRG neurons were not affected. The data point to a role for DRG11 in early postnatal survival of normally generated small primary afferent neurons innervating various kinds of peripheral tissues, which would explain the nociceptive deficits observed in Drg11-null mutant mice.
在发育过程中，背根神经节（DRG）神经元分化为各种亚群，伤害性神经元属于小直径神经元类别。本研究探讨了DRG11（一种在小直径DRG神经元投射的脊髓区域表达的转录因子）在初级传入系统发育中的作用。在胚胎期和出生后的野生型和Drg11（-/-）小鼠之间比较了DRG神经元的各种亚类。在Drg11（-/-）小鼠中，P7时小肽能和非肽能DRG神经元数量减少，同时伴有异常细胞死亡。小DRG神经元在皮肤、内脏和深部组织中的神经支配受损。大DRG神经元未受影响。数据表明DRG11在正常生成的支配各种外周组织的小初级传入神经元出生后早期存活中起作用，这可以解释在Drg11基因敲除突变小鼠中观察到的伤害性缺陷。
