It is widely believed that axons in the central nervous system (CNS) of adult mammals are incapable of regrowth following injury. Counter to this notion, we describe the structural and functional regrowth of norepinephrine axons following brain injury in the adult mouse. These results extend previous studies from our lab describing the regenerative capacity of serotonin axons in the CNS by demonstrating axon regrowth of another neuronal subtype and the capacity of these regrown axons to respond normally to an external physiological stimulus. Taken together, these findings suggest that monoaminergic neurons share a common program for axon regrowth. Elucidation of this molecular and genetic program could inform therapies to promote axon regrowth and functional recovery following injury to the CNS.
Organizer
Chris de Zeeuw
c.dezeeuw@erasmusmc.nl