The role of RhoA in the establishment of neuronal polarity
Final Report Abstract
In summary, my results support the idea that Rac1 functions in localizing WAVE-signaling to sites where dynamic changes of the actin cytoskeleton induce the formation of lamellipodia and that this process regulates axon growth. Interestingly, Cdc42 signaling pathway regulating filopodia formation also affects axon growth. This suggests that distinct Rho signaling cascades, converging on the regulation of actin dynamics, are synergistically involved in axon formation. As a next step I would like to study the role of RhoA in axon formation. Neuronspecific RhoA-knockout mice are viable and provide a valuable tool to examine the role of RhoA in neuronal polarity. After elucidating the role of these different Rho GTPases in neuronal polarity, it would be interesting to understand how different Rho signalling pathways are coordinated in developing neurons.
