title: GDNF family ligands display distinct action profiles on cultured GABAergic and serotonergic neurons of rat ventral mesencephalon.
abstract: Glial-cell-line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), neurturin (NRTN), artemin (ARTN) and persephin (PSPN), known as the GDNF family ligands (GFLs), influence the development, survival and differentiation of cultured dopaminergic neurons from ventral mesencephalon (VM). Detailed knowledge about the effects of GFLs on other neuronal populations in the VM is essential for their potential application as therapeutic molecules for Parkinson's disease. Hence, in a comparative study, we investigated the effects of GFLs on cell densities and morphological differentiation of gamma-aminobutyric acid-immunoreactive (GABA-ir) and serotonin-ir (5-HT-ir) neurons in primary cultures of E14 rat VM. We observed that all GFLs [10 ng/ml] significantly increased GABA-ir cell densities (1.6-fold) as well as neurite length/neuron. However, only GDNF significantly increased the number of primary neurites/neuron, and none of the GFLs affected soma size of GABA-ir neurons. In contrast, only NRTN treatment significantly increased 5-HT-ir cells densities at 10 ng/ml (1.3-fold), while an augmentation was seen for GDNF and PSPN at 100 ng/ml (2.4-fold and 1.7-fold, respectively). ARTN had no effect on 5-HT-ir cell densities. Morphological analysis of 5-HT-ir neurons revealed a significant increase of soma size, number of primary neurites/neuron and neurite length/neuron after GDNF exposure, while PSPN only affected soma size, and NRTN and ARTN failed to exert any effect. In conclusion, we identified GFLs as effective neurotrophic factors for VM GABAergic and serotonergic neurons, demonstrating characteristic individual action profiles emphasizing their important and distinct roles during brain development.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, University of Bern, CH-3010 Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Angélique
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ducray
authors.forename: Sandra H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Krebs
authors.forename: Benoît
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schaller
authors.forename: Rolf W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Seiler
authors.forename: Morten
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: Hans R
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Widmer
mesh_terms: D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D002452:Cell Count / Q000379:methods; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004622:Embryo, Mammalian; D051098:Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D007150:Immunohistochemistry / Q000379:methods; D008636:Mesencephalon / Q000166:cytology*; D016501:Neurites / Q000187:drug effects; D009474:Neurons / Q000145:classification / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D012701:Serotonin / Q000378:metabolism*; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts; D013844:Thiazoles; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D051098:Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factors; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts; D013844:Thiazoles; D012701:Serotonin; D005680:gamma-Aminobutyric Acid; D010751:Phosphopyruvate Hydratase; C022616:thiazolyl blue