Integrins and the extracellular matrix: Key mediators of development and regeneration of the sensory nervous system

Abstract

The somatosensory nervous system is responsible for the transmission of a multitude of sensory information from specialized receptors in the periphery to the central nervous system. Sensory afferents can potentially be damaged at several sites: in the peripheral nerve; the dorsal root; or the dorsal columns of the spinal cord; and the success of regeneration depends on the site of injury. The regeneration of peripheral nerve branches following injury is relatively successful compared to central branches. This is largely attributed to the presence of neurotrophic factors and a Schwann cell basement membrane rich in permissive extracellular matrix (ECM) components which promote axonal regeneration in the peripheral nerve. Modulation of the ECM environment and/or neuronal integrins may enhance regenerative potential of sensory neurons following peripheral or central nerve injury or disease. This review describes the interactions between integrins and ECM molecules (particularly the growth supportive ligands, laminin, and fibronectin; and the growth inhibitory chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans (CSPGs)) during development and regeneration of sensory neurons following physical injury or neuropathy.

The role of Gpi-anchored axonal glycoproteins in neural development and neurological disorders

“…Morphoregulatory molecules may belong to distinct families of adhesion receptors, the main grouping being the Cadherins (Basu et al, 2015;Friedman et al, 2015;Gartner et al, 2015), the Integrins (Gardiner, 2011) and the Immunoglobulin superfamily (IgCAM, Maness and Schachner, 2007). Based on their interactions, these molecules may be differentially involved in distinct aspects of neural developmental control (Yogev and Shen, 2014).…”

Fabrication of biocompatible free-standing nanopatterned films for primary neuronal cultures

“…Under pathological conditions, such as nerve injury or neuropathies, the same molecules are able to drive axonal regeneration, eventually leading to a partial functional recovery. 5,6 Synthetic interactions may thus be engineered to serve as a potent signalling mechanism for use in regenerative medicine. Recent developments in photolithography and microfabrication allow producing substrates with micro-and nano-scale features in the range of the native topography of ECM molecules.…”

The Lhx9-Integrin pathway is essential for positioning of the proepicardial organ

“…Previous data has implicated Itgα4 as being essential for epicardial development particularly in regulating PE cell clustering, epicardial adhesion and epicardial migration (Sengbusch et al, 2002;Pinco et al, 2001;Yang et al, 1995;Dettman et al, 2003;Dokic and Dettman, 2006;Hirose et al, 2006;Pae et al, 2008;Bax et al, 2010). Integrin heterodimers have been shown to coordinate cytoskeletal interactions and adhesion with the surrounding ECM environment (Gardiner, 2011;Gehler et al, 2013;Huttenlocher and Horwitz, 2011;Manninen, 2015;Wolfenson et al, 2013), which are pertinent processes for epicardial formation and function (Kálmán et al, 1995;Nahirney et al, 2003).…”