"mike" <mike-anderson at nwu.edu> wrote in message
news:mike-anderson-2110000251100001 at dhcp083174.res-hall.nwu.edu...
> i am confused as to the direction that different molecules travel along
> the axon, i know that organelles can be carried antero, or retrograde, but
> what about things such as nerve growth factor? Just a little confused.
> Forgive me if this is the wronog place to ask.
> --
> mike
> In my dreams i'm dying all the time
>http://www.mp3.com/mikeanderson
This is a good place to ask. I believe it is possible for pretty much
anything
inside the neuron to be carried in any which direction. What is more to the
point is where is the stuff likely to come from?
If a cell is manufacturing a protein, then that must be done in the rough
ER in the soma. Therefore it will be transported anterograde down the
axon. On the other hand, if a protein is made somewhere else outside
the cell and acts as a signaling agent, then it is possible for it to be
picked up by endocytosis and transported. So something that is picked
up at the axon terminal (where the vesicle recycling allows for a lot of
that
kind of thing) might well be transported retrograde back to the cell body
Something picked up in the soma or dendrite area might be transported
anterograde down the axon.
I don't know specifically where nerve growth factor fits in the story.
And I would suggest you talk to someone about your dreams!