Culturing Primary Cortical Neurons for Live-Imaging.

Primary neuronal cultures allow for in vitro analysis of early developmental processes such as axon pathfinding and growth dynamics. When coupled with methods to visualize and measure microtubule dynamics, this methodology enables an inside look at how the cytoskeleton changes in response to extracellular signaling cues. Here, we describe the culturing conditions and tools required to extract primary cortical neurons from postnatal mouse brains and visualize cytoskeletal components.

Bridging the Gap: The Importance of TUBA1A α-Tubulin in Forming Midline Commissures.

Developing neurons undergo dramatic morphological changes to appropriately migrate and extend axons to make synaptic connections. The microtubule cytoskeleton, made of α/ß-tubulin dimers, drives neurite outgrowth, promotes neuronal growth cone responses, and facilitates intracellular transport of critical cargoes during neurodevelopment. TUBA1A constitutes the majority of α-tubulin in the developing brain and mutations to TUBA1A in humans cause severe brain malformations accompanied by varying neurological defects, collectively termed tubulinopathies. Studies of TUBA1A function in mammalian cells have been limited by the presence of multiple genes encoding highly similar tubulin proteins, which leads to α-tubulin antibody promiscuity and makes genetic manipulation challenging. Here, we test mutant tubulin levels and assembly activity and analyze the impact of TUBA1A reduction on growth cone composition, neurite extension, and commissural axon architecture during brain development. We present a novel tagging method for studying and manipulating TUBA1A in cells without impairing tubulin function. Using this tool, we show that a TUBA1A loss-of-function mutation TUBA1A N102D (TUBA1A ND ), reduces TUBA1A protein levels and prevents incorporation of TUBA1A into microtubule polymers. Reduced Tuba1a α-tubulin in heterozygous Tuba1a ND/+ mice leads to grossly normal brain formation except a significant impact on axon extension and impaired formation of forebrain commissures. Neurons with reduced Tuba1a as a result of the Tuba1a ND mutation exhibit slower neuron outgrowth compared to controls. Neurons deficient in Tuba1a failed to localize microtubule associated protein-1b (Map1b) to the developing growth cone, likely impacting stabilization of microtubules. Overall, we show that reduced Tuba1a is sufficient to support neuronal migration and cortex development but not commissure formation, and provide mechanistic insight as to how TUBA1A tunes microtubule function to support neurodevelopment.

Reduced TUBA1A Tubulin Causes Defects in Trafficking and Impaired Adult Motor Behavior.

Newly born neurons express high levels of TUBA1A α-tubulin to assemble microtubules for neurite extension and to provide tracks for intracellular transport. In the adult brain, Tuba1a expression decreases dramatically. A mouse that harbors a loss-of-function mutation in the gene encoding TUBA1A (Tuba1aND/+ ) allows us to ask whether TUBA1A is important for the function of mature neurons. α-Tubulin levels are about half of wild type in juvenile Tuba1aND/+ brains, but are close to normal in older animals. In postnatal day (P)0 cultured neurons, reduced TUBA1A allows for assembly of less microtubules in axons resulting in more pausing during organelle trafficking. While Tuba1aND/+ mouse behavior is indistinguishable from wild-type siblings at weaning, Tuba1aND/+ mice develop adult-onset ataxia. Neurons important for motor function in Tuba1aND/+ remain indistinguishable from wild-type with respect to morphology and number and display no evidence of axon degeneration. Tuba1aND/+ neuromuscular junction (NMJ) synapses are the same size as wild-type before the onset of ataxia, but are reduced in size in older animals. Together, these data indicate that the TUBA1A-rich microtubule tracks that are assembled during development are essential for mature neuron function and maintenance of synapses over time.