Cytomechanics of neurite outgrowth from chick brain neurons

Mechanical tension is a direct and immediate stimulus for neurite initiation and elongation from peripheral neurons. We report here that the relationship between tension and neurite outgrowth is equally initimate for embryonic chick forebrain neurons. Culture of forebrain neurons was unusually simple and reliable, and some of these cells undergo early events of axonal-dendritic polarity. Neurite outgrowth can be initiated de novo by experimental application of tension to the cell margin of forebrain neurons placed into culture 8–12 hours earlier, prior to spontaneous neurite outgrowth. Experimentally induced neurite elongation from these neurons shows the same robust linear relationship between elongation rate and magnitude of applied tension as peripheral neurons, i.e. both show a fluid-like growth response to tension. Although forebrain and sensory neurons manifest a similar distribution of growth sensitivity to tension (growth rate/unit tension), chick forebrain neurons initiated and elongated neurites at substantially lower net tensions than peripheral neurons. This is because, unlike peripheral neurons, there is no minimum threshold tension required for elongation in forebrain neurons; all positive tensions stimulate neurite outgrowth. Consistent with this observation, chick forebrain neurons showed weak retractile behavior in response to slackening compared to sensory neurons. Neurites that were slackened showed only transient elastic behavior and never actively produced tension, as do chick sensory neurons after slackening. We conclude that tension is an important regulator of both peripheral and central neuronal growth, but that elastic behavior is much weaker for forebrain neurons than peripheral neurons from the same developing organism. These data have significance for the understanding of the morphogenetic events of brain development.