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| Researchers have discovered two proteins that play a role in the degeneration of axons in nerve cells. Credit: Dr Rosina Giordano-Santini / QBI |
University
of Queensland researchers have discovered the worm contains two proteins that
play a role in the degeneration of axons in nerve cells.
Project
leader Associate Professor Massimo Hilliard, from the Queensland Brain
Institute, said axons - long, thread-like nerve cell sections that transmit
information - were one of the first parts destroyed in neurodegenerative
disease.
"By
understanding the molecules involved in axonal degeneration, we can find better
ways to protect neurons," Dr Hilliard said.
"Axons
are often hit and damaged by external trauma or internal injury."
Nerve
axons are also damaged in neurodegenerative conditions including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's and Charcot-Marie-Tooth diseases.
The
researchers discovered the new proteins by using a laser to cut axons in the
roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans), a small model system with only
302 neurons.
Monash
University collaborator Dr Brent Neumann, previously of QBI, said C. elegans
was an ideal research model.
"This
tiny worm - about 1mm long - allows us to understand what happens in axonal
degeneration on a molecular and genetic level," Dr Neumann said.
"We
found there is cross-talk between the dying neuron and the surrounding tissue,
where the neuron sends a signal that it needs to be cleaned up."
The
study's co-lead author, Ms Annika Nichols, said the discovery created new
avenues for researchers seeking to limit the degenerative process.
"The
aim would be to allow neurons to be better preserved," she said.
The
proteins identified seem to alter the membrane of dying neurons.
"The
molecular components we discovered are conserved across evolution, meaning that
the same proteins exist in the C. elegans worm as in flies, mice and
humans," Ms Nichols said.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/306492.php
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