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Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factors (Rho GEFs) activate Rho GTPases, which act as molecular switches regulating various essential cellular functions. This study investigated the role of ARHGEF5, a Rho GEF known for its involvement in cell migration and invasion processes, in the context of brain development. We found that ARHGEF5 is essential for dendrite development during the early stages of neuronal growth. We also discovered that ARHGEF5 binds to Drebrin E, which is vital for coordinating actin and microtubule dynamics, and facilitates the interaction between Drebrin E and Cyclin-dependent kinase 5, which phosphorylates Drebrin E. Notably, ARHGEF5 deficiency resulted in a decrease in acetylated α-tubulin levels, and the expression of an α-tubulin acetylation mimetic mutant (K40Q) rescued the defects in dendrite development and neuronal migration, suggesting ARHGEF5's role in modulating microtubule stability. Additionally, ARHGEF5 was shown to influence Golgi positioning in the leading processes of migrating cortical neurons during brain development. Our study suggests that ARHGEF5 plays a crucial role in integrating cytoskeletal dynamics with neuronal morphogenesis and migration processes during brain development.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2024.1421932 | DOI Listing |
JCI Insight
September 2025
Edinburgh Medical School: Biomedical Sciences & Euan MacDonald Centre for M, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, United Kingdom.
Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a neuromuscular disease caused by low levels of SMN protein. Several therapeutic approaches boosting SMN are approved for human patients, delivering remarkable improvements in lifespan and symptoms. However, emerging phenotypes, including neurodevelopmental comorbidities, are being reported in some treated SMA patients, indicative of alterations in brain development.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRNA Biol
September 2025
Department of Stem Cell Biology, School of Medicine, Konkuk University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Neural stem cells (NSCs) are multipotent stem cells with self-renewal capacity, able to differentiate into all neural lineages of the central nervous system, including neurons, oligodendrocytes, and astrocytes; thus, their proliferation and differentiation are essential for embryonic neurodevelopment and adult brain homoeostasis. Dysregulation in these processes is implicated in neurological disorders, highlighting the need to elucidate how NSCs proliferate and differentiate to clarify the mechanisms of neurogenesis and uncover potential therapeutic targets. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are small, post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression involved in many aspects of nervous system development and function.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFProc Natl Acad Sci U S A
September 2025
Department of Medical and Molecular Genetics, Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN 46202.
Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are highly compartmentalized neurons whose long axons serve as the sole connection between the eye and the brain. In both injury and disease, RGC degeneration occurs in a similarly compartmentalized manner, with distinct molecular and cellular responses in the axonal and somatodendritic regions. The goal of this study was to establish a microfluidic-based platform to investigate RGC compartmentalization in both health and disease states.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Comput Neurosci
September 2025
School of Electrical and Information Engineering, Tianjin University, Tianjin, 300072, China.
Transcranial alternating current stimulation (tACS) enables non-invasive modulation of brain activity, holding promise for cognitive research and clinical applications. However, it remains unclear how the spiking activity of cortical neurons is modulated by specific electric field (E-field) distributions. Here, we use a multi-scale computational framework that integrates an anatomically accurate head model with morphologically realistic neuron models to simulate the responses of layer 5 pyramidal cells (L5 PCs) to the E-fields generated by conventional M1-SO tACS.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFNeurochem Res
September 2025
School of Pharmacy, Jiangxi University of Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, 330004, China.
Metabolic synergy between astrocytes and neurons is key to maintaining normal brain function. As the main supporting cells in the brain, astrocytes work closely with neurons through intercellular metabolic synergy networks to jointly regulate energy metabolism, lipid metabolism, synaptic transmission, and cerebral blood flow. This important synergy is often disrupted in neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and stroke.
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