Identification of long noncoding RNAs in injury-resilient and injury-susceptible mouse retinal ganglion cells.

Background: Emerging evidence indicates that long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are important regulators of various biological processes, and their expression can be altered following certain pathological conditions, including central nervous system injury. Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), whose axons form the optic nerve, are a heterogeneous population of neurons with more than 40 molecularly distinct subtypes in mouse. While most RGCs, including the ON-OFF direction-selective RGCs (ooDSGCs), are vulnerable to axonal injury, a small population of RGCs, including the intrinsically photosensitive RGCs (ipRGCs), are more resilient.

Neural Cadherin Plays Distinct Roles for Neuronal Survival and Axon Growth under Different Regenerative Conditions.

Growing axons in the CNS often migrate along specific pathways to reach their targets. During embryonic development, this migration is guided by different types of cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) present on the surface of glial cells or other neurons, including the neural cadherin (NCAD). Axons in the adult CNS can be stimulated to regenerate, and travel long distances.