Science Codex
Originally Posted: Feb. 12, 2015
Massive elimination of neurons is a critical aspect of normal nervous system development but also represents a defining feature of neurodegenerative pathologies, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, Huntington’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Although the molecular events that trigger neuronal death in each of these neurodegenerative diseases is distinct, the downstream apoptotic process through which neurons die in these pathologies are thought to share commonalities to each other, as well as to developmentally-regulated neuronal death. Identifying genes that promote or prevent neuronal death would thus be an important step in understanding both developmentally-regulated neuronal death as well as the mechanisms underlying degenerative brain disorders.
Scientists at Southern Methodist University, led by Professor and Chair of Biological Sciences Santosh D’Mello, have used RNA-Seq to conduct transcriptome profiling of gene expression changes in dying neurons. This study, reported in the February 2015 issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, utilized cultured cerebellar granule neurons, one of the most widely used models to study neuronal death. READ MORE