Brain-derived neurotrophic factor increases the motility of a particular N-methyl-D-aspartate /GABA-responsive subset of neural progenitor cells.

Neurotrophins like brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) promote the migration of subsets of neural progenitor cells. The mechanism by which motility is increased and the functional properties of BDNF-responsive cells are not very well known. We have used the neurosphere model, combining time-lapse microscopy, immunocytochemistry, and Ca(2+) imaging, to study the effect of BDNF on parameters such as motility and neurotransmitter responsiveness of migrating neural progenitors. At the initiation of differentiation thick glial glutamate-aspartate transporter (GLAST)-positive radial processes emerged from the neurosphere, followed by the exit of neuron-like cells. The neuron-like cells moved outside the radial processes in a phasic manner with intermittent surges of motility and stationary periods. BDNF increased the number and promoted the progress of the neuron-like cells by prolonging surges and decreasing the length of stationary phases. The average rate of cellular movement during surges was unaffected by BDNF. BDNF also caused a several fold increase in positive staining for tropomyosin-related kinase B (TrkB) receptors and neuronal markers such as Calbindin, microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP-2), and neuron-specific nuclear protein (NeuN) in cells outside the radial network. Calcium imaging allowed for further characterization of the BDNF-responsive cell population. Kainate-responsive cells, denoting the expression of AMPA/kainate receptors, dominated in the outer migration layers while cells responding to (S)-3,5-dihydroxyphenylglycine (DHPG) via metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGluR5) dominated in the inner migration layers. BDNF did not appreciably affect the distribution of these cells but promoted the redistribution of a small subpopulation (about 20%) of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)- and GABA-responsive cells to the outermost layers of migration. The results demonstrate that BDNF does not affect cell motility per se but alters the phasic behavior of cell movement by promoting periods of high motility in a defined subpopulation of cells which give a robust Ca(2+) response to NMDA and GABA.