Elsevier

Developmental Biology

Volume 102, Issue 1, March 1984, Pages 248-259
Developmental Biology

Full paper
Development of cerebellar astroglia: Transitions in form and cytoskeletal content

https://doi.org/10.1016/0012-1606(84)90189-1Get rights and content

Abstract

The forms, disposition, and cytoskeletal contents of astroglia in immature mouse cerebellum were studied by immunocytochemical staining with antisera against two intermediate filament proteins, vimentin (Vim) (58,000 daltons) and glial filament protein (GF) (51,000 daltons). From embryonic (E) Day 15 to postnatal (P) Day 2, Vim is expressed in cells throughout the cerebellar anlage, including radial glia and Bergmann fibers, cells with amorphous shapes and 2–3 processes, and thick longitudinal elements oriented parallel to axons within axon tracts. GF is not expressed during the first few postnatal days, but by P7, there is a dramatic increase in GF-positive astrocyte-like cells in the putative white matter that are more densely stained and more crowded than at any other age. Between P7 and P14 all astrocytes throughout the cerebellum express both Vim and GF. From P21 on, Vim expression is progressively rarer in all astrocytes except for Bergmann fibers, and GF-positive astrocytes become less numerous. These findings raise two issues: (a) the lineage and relationships of cells expressing Vim and GF; (b) Since GF-positive cells appear as axon ingrowth ceases, axons must grow in a terrain comprised of glial cells that have a different cytoskeletal composition (vimentin), reflecting a less differentiated state, than mature astrocytes or than the GF-rich astrocytes that proliferate after injury in adult CNS.

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    This work was supported by NIH Grants NS-16951 (C.A.M.) and EY-03849 (R.K.H.L.).

    2

    P.B. is a recipient of Borsa di Perfezionamento in Neurobiologia “Fondazione Giuseppe Levi”.

    3

    C.A.M. and R.K.H.L. are both recipients of NIH Research Career Development Awards.

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