Antisera to basal lamina and glial endfeet disturb the normal extension of axons on retina and pigment epithelium basal laminae.

In order to determine the role of the extracellular matrix in regulating the directed growth of embryonic neurites, antisera to retina (a-RBL I and II), to pigment epithelium (a-PBL) and to glomerular (a-GBL) basal lamina were probed for an effect on the ordered extension of neurites. In the assays, retina explants from chick and quail were cultured on basal lamina from embryonic chick retina and pigment epithelium either in the presence of anti-basal lamina antisera or in the presence of the corresponding preimmune sera. In the presence of all anti-basal lamina antisera, normal extension of axons was greatly inhibited both on retina and on pigment epithelium basal lamina. The antisera affected the growth pattern and the morphology of the individual axons in two ways: in the presence of a-RBL I the short axons were less directed, developed more and longer side branches, and the lamellipodia of the growth cones were reduced in size compared to axons from control cultures. In the presence of a-RBL II and a-GBL, axons grew slowly out from the explants as very thick bundles, strikingly different from axons in control cultures. The antiserum to pigment epithelium basal lamina induced both strong fasciculation and disorganization of the linear fiber extension, being intermediate between the two types of effects observed after antiserum addition. The results suggest that adhesive matrix molecules in basal laminae have important functions in elongation, fasciculation and in the morphology of growing axons.