An in vitro system for the study of slow axonal transport

Here we present a model system which for the first time permits studies of slow axonal transport in vitro. Axonally transported proteins of rat vagus nerves were radiolabelled with [35S]methionine in the nodose ganglion in vitro and were incubated for up to 3 days in culture medium. Slowly transported proteins were analyzed by one- and two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and identified on Western blots of two-dimensional gels with antibodies to actin and alpha-tubulin. The system will be valuable for pharmacological analysis of the mechanisms of slow transport.