Imaging the mechanisms of axon stretch growth

The transition from embryo to adulthood involves a massive growth in the nervous system where axons in nerves extend and expand to accommodate to this growth. Applying mechanical forces to dorsal root ganglia neuronal cultures has previously shown that there is stimulation in axonal growth, gradually elongating the axon over a set period of time. In this research, the main focus is to study with live imaging how natural biomechanical forces, associated with growth of an organism, initiate unique neurobiological mechanisms that help drive the formation of long nerves. For this purpose, a bioreactor was developed for live imaging of stretch-growth as it occurs on the stage of a microscope. The bioreactor is independent from an incubator with external temperature controller and heating system regulated its physiological conditions. Morphology changes and cytoskeletal transport were captured live at magnifications up to 60x over weeks of culturing.