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Axon guidance

Setting up for seeing in slow motion

Nature Reviews Neuroscience volume 16, pages 374–375 (2015)Cite this article

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In the first study, Sun et al. used various cell-labelling techniques to show that semaphorin 6A (SEMA6A) is expressed in MTN-projecting RGCs. Intriguingly, although RGCs projected to and arrived at the MTN of Sema6a−/− mice during embryonic stages, by postnatal day 1 (P1) there were fewer RGC projections in the MTN of Sema6a−/− mice than in wild-type mice. These data suggest that SEMA6A is necessary for successful targeting and maintenance of RGC axons in the MTN.

Plexin A2 (PLXNA2) and PLXNA4 were previously known to function as SEMA6A receptors. In this study, the authors found that both plexins were expressed in the MTN — but not in RGCs. RGC projections were not seen in the MTN of mice lacking PLXNA2 and PLXNA4. Whereas wild-type retinal explants extended axonal projections preferentially onto stripes bearing PLXNA2 and PLXNA4 ectodomains, axons from retinal explants from Sema6a−/− mice showed no such preference for plexins, indicating that in this system SEMA6A functions as a receptor, responding to plexins to mediate axon targeting. Finally, Sun et al. found that vertical OKR responses to slow-moving gratings were abrogated in Sema6a−/− mice and in Plxna2−/−;Plxna4−/− mice. Thus, SEMA6A, PLXNA2 and PLXNA4 are all required for normal vertical OKR.

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References

  1. Sun, L. O. et al. Functional assembly of accessory optic system circuitry critical for compensatory eye movements. Neuron http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2015.03.064 (2015)

  2. Osterhout, J. A. et al. Contactin-4 mediates axon-target specificity and functional development of the accessory optic system. Neuron http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2015.04.005 (2015)

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Authors
  1. Natasha Bray
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Bray, N. Setting up for seeing in slow motion. Nat Rev Neurosci 16, 374–375 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrn3979

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