Abstract
Several neurotransmitter systems have been related to developmental processes during the past decade. In this review, we discuss the evidence that the nicotinic acetylcholine receptors could have an additional function during development that may be unrelated to their role in cholinergic neurotransmission in the vertebrate brain. Both temporal expression data and in vitro and in vivo studies with nicotinic agonists and antagonists have provided direct support for a role of nicotinic receptors in neural developmental processes such as neurite outgrowth and differentiation. A similar picture has emerged for other neurotransmitter and receptor systems as well, which generates a new view of neural processes during both development and mature life.
Highlights
Considerable progress has been obtained in understanding the processes that control the development of the nervous system
In this review we focus on the possible involvement of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors in developmental processes such as neurite outgrowth and differentiation
We have found in our laboratory that the infusion of nicotine in chick eggs seems to produce a reduction of immunoreactivity for the α2, α5, α8, and β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) subunits in perikarya and neuropil of specific regions of the chick embryonic brain, with an apparent disruption of the neuritic structure of neurons containing those subunits
Summary
Considerable progress has been obtained in understanding the processes that control the development of the nervous system. In this review we focus on the possible involvement of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) in developmental processes such as neurite outgrowth and differentiation.
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