REGULATION OF IMMUNOREACTIVE GAP-43 EXPRESSION IN RAT CORTICAL MACROGLIA IS CELL TYPE SPECIFIC

Growth-associated protein 43 (GAP-43) is an abundant, intensely investigated membrane phosphoprotein of the nervous system (Benowitz, L.I., and A. Routtenberg. 1987. Trends Neurosci. 10: 527-532; Skene, J.H.P. 1989. Annu. Rev. Neurosci. 12: 127-156), with a hitherto unknown function. We have previously demonstrated that astrocytes, brain macroglial cells, contain GAP-43 (Steisslinger, H.W., V.J. Aloyo, and L. Vitkovic. 1987. Brain Res. 415: 375-379; Vitkovic, L., H.W. Steisslinger, V.J. Aloyo, and M. Mersel. 1988. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. 85: 8296-8300; Vitkovic, L., and M. Mersel. 1989. Metab. Brain Dis. 4: 47-53). Results from double immunofluorescent labeling experiments presented here show that oligodendrocytes also contain GAP-43 immunoreactivity (GAP-43ir). Thus, all three macroglial cell types of the central venous system (type 1 and type 2 astrocytes and oligodendrocytes) contain GAP-43. Whereas immunoreactive GAP-43 is expressed by progenitors of all macroglial cell types, the developmental regulation of its expression is cell type specific. Immunoreactive GAP-43 is downregulated in type 1 astrocytes, and constitutively expressed in both type 2 astrocytes and oligodendrocytes. These results may be relevant to potential function(s) of GAP-43.