Previous work in my laboratory demonstrated an increase in the number of fibers of primary sensory afferents in the dorsal root after unilateral spinal cord denervation. This increase is primarily in the unmyelinated fiber population and is interpreted as sprouting. In an effort to manipulate this phenomenon, the protein Nerve Growth Factor NGF) and antibodies to NGF (Anti-NGF) were given to denervated and normal neonatal rats. Work to date indicates that NGF had little effect on neuron or axon populations but after anti-NGF treatment, a population of small neurons in the dorsal root ganglion dies and the remaining neurons emit more processes than before. It is the goal of the present research proposal to pursue the extent and molecular mechanisms of the neural reorganization caused by anti-NGF in the following specific aims: 1) To determine composition and origin of sprouting fibers in the spinal cord. 2) To determine molecular markers for the sprouted presynaptic endings and postsynaptic structures in the dorsal horn. 3) To determine which cell populations synthesize NGF, have receptors for NGF, and accumulate and bind NGF in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Techniques include ultrastructural stereology, immunocytochemistry, autoradiography and in situ hybridization. This information will contribute to the understanding of molecular mechanisms underlying the selective death and sprouting of neuronal populations in response to exogenous factors. This knowledge will contribute to the use of exogenous drugs toward manipulations of specific neuronal populations in clinical situations.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Type
Modified Research Career Development Award (K04)
Project #
1K04NS001217-01A1
Application #
3075010
Study Section
Neurology B Subcommittee 1 (NEUB)
Project Start
1988-08-01
Project End
1993-07-31
Budget Start
1988-08-01
Budget End
1989-07-31
Support Year
1
Fiscal Year
1988
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Texas Medical Br Galveston
Department
Type
Schools of Medicine
DUNS #
041367053
City
Galveston
State
TX
Country
United States
Zip Code
77555
Zompa, E A; Pizzo, D P; Hulsebosch, C E (1993) Migration and differentiation of PC12 cells transplanted into the rat spinal cord. Int J Dev Neurosci 11:535-44
Fabian, R H; Hulsebosch, C E (1993) Plasma nerve growth factor access to the postnatal central nervous system. Brain Res 611:46-52
Stroemer, R P; Kent, T A; Hulsebosch, C E (1993) Acute increase in expression of growth associated protein GAP-43 following cortical ischemia in rat. Neurosci Lett 162:51-4
Urschel, B A; Hulsebosch, C E (1992) Distribution and relative density of p75 nerve growth factor receptors in the rat brain as a function of age and treatment with antibodies to nerve growth factor. Brain Res 591:223-38
Stroemer, R P; Kent, T A; Hulsebosch, C E (1992) Increase in synaptophysin immunoreactivity following cortical infarction. Neurosci Lett 147:21-4
Urschel, B A; Hulsebosch, C E (1992) Distribution and relative density of p75 nerve growth factor receptors in the rat spinal cord as a function of age and treatment with antibodies to nerve growth factor. Brain Res Dev Brain Res 69:261-70
Urschel, B A; Brown, P N; Hulsebosch, C E (1991) Differential effects on sensory nerve processes and behavioral alterations in the rat after treatment with antibodies to nerve growth factor. Exp Neurol 114:44-52
McNeill, D L; Carlton, S M; Coggeshall, R E et al. (1990) Denervation-induced intraspinal synaptogenesis of calcitonin gene-related peptide containing primary afferent terminals. J Comp Neurol 296:263-8
Urschel, B A; Hulsebosch, C E (1990) Schwann cell-neuronal interactions in the rat involve nerve growth factor. J Comp Neurol 296:114-22
Urschel, B A; Hulsebosch, C E (1990) In vivo recovery of Schwann cell-neuronal interactions altered by nerve growth factor suppression in the rat. Neurosci Lett 117:50-5

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