are researching how nerve fibres stay connected.
University of Queensland (UQ) researchers have identified how nerve cells stay connected to the surrounding skin despite the wear and tear of everyday movement.
Professor Massimo Hilliard from UQ’s Queensland Brain Institute explained the team identified a molecule known as AGEF-1 that regulates the stability of specialised attachments between sensory neurons and the skin.
“Using the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans (C.elegans), the team investigated how touch-sensing nerves remain resilient despite being subjected to constant mechanical strain from everyday movement,” Professor Hilliard said.
“Our findings show how mutations in AGEF-1 help protect the axons of sensory neurons in the skin from movement-induced damage,” Professor Hilliard said.
“The team’s work builds on earlier studies demonstrating the critical role that neighbouring tissues play in maintaining neuronal health and protecting nerve fibres.”
Dr Igor Bonacossa-Pereira led this latest study in the Hilliard lab alongside Dat Le and Dr Sean Coakley from UQ’s School of Biomedical Sciences.
Dr Bonacossa-Pereira said sensory neurons embedded within the skin face unique mechanical challenges throughout life.
“Touch-sensing nerves are physically attached to surrounding tissues and are constantly exposed to stretching, bending and other forces,” Dr Bonacossa-Pereira said.
“We sought to understand how these fragile structures resist damage and through an unbiased genetic screen, we identified AGEF-1.
“Then we showed how AGEF-1 works within skin cells to regulate RAB-35, a molecule involved in maintaining neuron–skin attachments.
“AGEF-1 fine-tunes these attachments, helping preserve nerve fibre integrity and prevent breakage.”
green and AGEF-1 in gold. Note how green and gold sometimes overlap.
Importantly, the research team showed that the mechanism is conserved across species from C. elegans to humans, substituting AGEF-1 for the human equivalent BIG2.
“This discovery suggests similar mechanisms may operate in humans and provides a foundation for future research into how nerve fibres are damaged in neurological diseases,” Dr Bonacossa-Pereira said.
“It also provides insight into how defects in cellular attachment and maintenance may contribute to disease as BIG2 is linked with a neurodevelopmental condition called periventricular nodular heterotopia.”
This research was published in the Journal of Cell Science and featured on the cover.
See also a featured interview with Dr Igor Bonacossa-Pereira in the same journal.
