Getting directions: axon guidance receptors find the way.
As neuronal growth cones explore the terrain, their migration is dictated by guidance cues in the environment. Some cues are considered bifunctional because they can elicit an attractive or repulsive response. However, the cytoplasmic tails of guidance cue receptors appear to also control how growth cones respond. Merz and Culotti discuss recent evidence that the cytoplasmic domains of the DCC and UNC-5 family of receptors control the response of neurons to netrins, and propose a model for mechanisms by which axon guidance receptors might function.
Merz
D C
DC
Samuel Lunenfeld Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, 600 University Avenue, Toronto, Ontario M5G 1X5, Canada.
Culotti
J G
JG
D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons / Q000502:physiology*; D020439:Growth Cones / Q000502:physiology; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000502:physiology*; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000502:physiology*
D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface