Importance of the right path in nerve cell development

Gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA) is the main inhibitory neurotransmitter in the mammal and reduces neuronal excitability throughout the nervous system. Defects in neurotransmission involving GABA have been implicated in schizophrenia.

The GABAXONETDEV (Mechanisms of GABAergic interneurons axonal branching in developing cerebellum network) project has brought together gene expression, cell biology and axon guidance in cell signalling. The project researchers have unravelled migration paths of two different types of GABAergic interneurons: basket and stellate cells.

Research results from in vivo grafts showed that basket and stellate used different migratory paths during neuronal circuit integration. A series of time-lapse photographs on slices of cerebellar tissue showed that tangentially migrating molecular layer (ML)GI in the external granule cell layer of the cortex were all late integrating stellate cells.

GABAXONETDEV researchers have also shown that time-controlled environmental changes influence functional maturation within a migrating, genetically identical progenitor cell population.

These results point to direction of migration being the first indication of difference between basket and stellate cells. The element of timing comes in as tangential migration extends the maturation process of stellate cells and therefore delays differentiation and the environment in which they mature.

GABAXONETDEV research data has shown that models of nerve cell development in time and space could provide answers for the origins and development of neuropsychiatric disorders. Increased understanding may lead to identification of novel drug targets.