SPECTRINS IN
NEURONS
Spectrins are now
recognized as scaffolding components of membrane micro-domains in all tested
cells, working as important regulators of cell shape and deformability, but
their expression and functions in neurons is still not well understood.
When spectrins were first
identified in the plasma membrane of erythrocytes their presence and role in
neurons were still unimaginable.
Lacas-Gervais and
colleagues (β1VΣ1 spectrin stabilizes the nodes of Ranvier and axon
initial segments. J. Cell Biol. 166, 983-990, 2004) in a well conducted
research published in the Journal of Cell Biology studied the expression of
spectrins at the level of axon unmyelinated areas, such as initial segments and
nodes of Ranvier, and their function in nerve conduction.
The findings have
important implications for axonal physiology in normal and pathological
conditions and strongly support a scaffolding role of spectrins in nerve cells.