Fiber and NMJ / synaptic gene expression comparisons in rat extraocular muscle (EOM) and tibialis anterior (TA) muscle.
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ABSTRACT: Purpose: To examine and characterize the expression profile of genes expressed at the neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) of extraocular muscles (EOMs) in comparison to the NMJs of tibialis anterior muscle (TA). Methods: Adult rat rectus EOMs and TAs were dissected, flash-frozen, serially sectioned and stained for acetylcholinesterase to identify NMJs. Approximately 6000 NMJs for EOM (EOMsyn) and 6000 NMJs for TA (TAsyn) and equal amounts of NMJ-free fiber regions (EOMfib, TAfib) and underlying myonuclei were captured using laser capture microdissection (LCM). RNA was isolated, processed and used for microarray-based expression profiling. Profiles were generated for genes differentially expressed at synaptic and non-synaptic regions of TA (TAsyn vs TAfib) and EOM (EOMsyn vs EOMfib) using a false discovery rate (FDR) of 5% as well as an “interaction list” revealing the most significantly differentially expressed genes at an FDR of 1%. We validated the profiles by real-time quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). Results: The regional transcriptomes associated with NMJ of EOMs and TAs were identified. We found 275 genes that were preferentially expressed in EOMsyn and 230 known transcripts that were preferentially expressed in TAsyn; 288 of the transcripts were common to both synapses; these included well-known, evolutionarily conserved, synaptic markers (e.g. nicotinic Acetylcholine receptor (ACHR) alpha and epsilon subunits, nestin) as well as a large number of novel genes. Conclusion: Transcriptome level differences exist between EOM synaptic regions and TA synaptic regions. Our definition of the synaptic transcriptome provides insight into the mechanism of formation and functioning of the unique synapses of EOM and their differential involvement in diseases noted in the EOM allotype.
ORGANISM(S): Rattus norvegicus
PROVIDER: GSE15737 | GEO | 2010/04/16
SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA116627
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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