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- Paper published in Neuron
Paper published in Neuron
Tom Pratt has co-authored a recent paper in Neuron which was featured both in a Neuron Editorial and the Wellcome Trust website.
Nerve inputs from our eyes are sorted at the optic chiasm to distribute visual information between the left and right sides of the brain for integration and processing.
A key question, with likely applicability to other systems, is what are the molecular cues guiding the precise sorting of retinal axons at the optic chiasm.
For some time it has been known that repulsive cues guide a subset of retinal axons to connect with targets on the same side of the brain however the identity of attractive cues, whose existence was hinted at by mouse genetic and tissue culture approaches carried out here in the CIP into the role of the transcription factor Foxg1, has remained more elusive.
In a recent Neuron article the vascular growth factor VEGF, previously best known for its function in blood vessel formation, has been identified as an attractive factor which helps retinal axons connect with targets on the opposite side of the brain.
This study provides tantalising insight into molecular relationships between mechanisms sculpting development of nerve and blood supplies.
This article was published on Jul 26, 2011