We have a new paper in The Journal of Neuroscience on the reorganisation of injured axons.
Synaptic elimination and protection after minimal injury depend on cell type and their prelesion structural dynamics in the adult cerebral cortex.
Canty, A. J., Teles-Grilo Ruivo, L., Nesarajah, C., Song, S., Jackson, J. S., Little, G. E., De Paola, V.
The Journal of Neuroscience 33, 10374-10383 (2013).
In this study we assessed the real-time reorganization of injured axons for periods up to a year in the living brain, and found that:
- Injured cortical axons were eliminated proximally through a two-phase retraction process, which continued for at least 3 months post-lesion.
- Axons which later attempt to regenerate in both the mature and juvenile brain retracted less
- Rapid and lasting process of synaptic elimination, which depends on cell type and their recent history.
- Synapse formation rates were globally unaffected.
Together with Allegra-Mascaro et al. (2013) and Canty et al. (2013), we provide the first quantitative analysis of axonal regeneration and synaptic reorganization in the cortex and cerebellum of living mice by combining longitudinal in vivo two-photon imaging with precise laser micro-surgery.