ARRANGEMENT OF NEUROFILAMENTS, MICROTUBULES AND MICROFILAMENT-ASSOCIATED PROTEINS IN CULTURED DORSAL ROOT-GANGLIA CELLS

  • 1 January 1981
    • journal article
    • research article
    • Vol. 24  (1) , 20-27
Abstract
Using the indirect immunofluorescence technique, a study was made of the distribution of the major cytoskeletal proteins in cultures of cells derived from chicken embryo and newborn rat dorsal root ganglia. An antibody raised against the 200,000 MW neurofilament triplet polypeptide isolated from rat sciatic nerve strongly stained some, but not all neurons in these cultures. In contrast filamin and vimentin antibodies stained Schwann cells and fibroblasts but not neurons. Antibody to fibronectin only stained material associated with fibroblasts. These 4 antibodies can be used to distinguish between neurons, Schwann cells and fibroblasts, and to detect a heterogeneity in the neuronal population. In addition these antibodies, plus antibodies to actin, myosin, .alpha.-actinin, tropomyosin, fimbrin and tubilin allow a more detailed description of the cytoskeleton of cultured neurons at the light microscope level.