Signal transduction mechanisms underlying axonal growth responses stimulated by cell adhesion molecules

The mechanisms underlying nerve growth have been extensively studied, and it has been found that the three cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) L1, NCAM and N-cadherin play a key role in this process. All three CAMs are able to stimulate axonal growth from a variety of neuronal cells, and a range of agents which either mimic or inhibit CAM stimulated neurite outgrowth have been identified and has provided a basis for understanding the nature of the response. Results from these studies suggested that activation of a tyrosine kinase-phospholipase C gamma (PLC gamma) cascade was required for the CAM response. Following the identification of a CAM-homology domain (CHD) within the fibroblast growth factor receptor (FGFR) and a putative CHD-binding motif within each of the CAMs, it was suggested that this might be the tyrosine kinase implicated in the CAM pathway. This has been tested experimentally in a number of ways, including the use of transgenic mice expressing a dominant-negative FGFR, and several results have now demonstrated that a functional FGFR is required for CAM stimulated neurite outgrowth. More recently, treatment of neurons with the CAMs has been shown to stimulate FGFR autophosphorylation and PLC gamma activity which in turn leads to activation of a second messenger cascade involving diacylglycerol and arachidonic acid and results in calcium influx into the neurons. Pharmacological studies have confirmed that this cascade is responsible for the neurite outgrowth response.