The development of an identified subpopulation of avian sensory neurons is regulated by interaction with the periphery.
The monoclonal antibody, SN1, binds to the cell surface of a subpopulation of avian sensory neurons. Dorsal root ganglia (DRG) that innervate different peripheral fields contain significantly different proportions of SN1(+) neurons. Moreover, the developmental time of appearance of these neurons suggests that they normally express SN1 immuno-reactivity only after they have made contact with their normal peripheral targets (Marusich et al., 1986). In the present paper, we test the hypothesis that the proportion of SN1(+) neurons within DRG is regulated by interactions between the developing neurons and their peripheral targets. Thus, immature DRG explanted into a defined medium show an age-dependent increase in the proportion of cells able to become SN1(+), but fail to show the large increase in number of immunoreactive neurons that occurs in vivo. Moreover, unilateral wing bud extirpations performed at E3 (prior to wing innervation) resulted in a dramatic selective decrease in the number of SN1(+) neurons within DRG that normally innervate the wing. These results support the hypothesis that peripheral targets regulate the appearance of SN1(+) neurons.
D000818:Animals; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal / Q000276:immunology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003370:Coturnix / Q000196:embryology*; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology; D009475:Neurons, Afferent / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D011784:Quail / Q000196:embryology*; D014921:Wings, Animal / Q000196:embryology / Q000294:innervation
D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal