Beyond development: LINX/Islr2 expression and TrkA interaction in the adult nervous system under neuroinflammatory challenge

Introduction

LINX, also known as immunoglobulin superfamily containing leucine-rich repeat 2 (Islr2), was identified as a TrkA pathway component and demonstrated to modulate the NGF/TrkA-mediated axonal growth, guidance, and branching during development. However, there is limited information on LINX expression in the adult nervous system, and the possible functions of LINX in mature neurons remain unexplored. These two questions are addressed by the present study, which first investigates LINX expression in the adult spinal cord (SC), dorsal root ganglia (DRG), and cerebral cortex (Cx), and subsequently explores LINX/TrkA functions using the DRG organ culture model.