1362-Cytoskeletal Oscillator Establishes Neuronal Polarity

These scientific excerpts detail the discovery of a soma-driven oscillatory program that governs how neurons establish polarity by selecting a single axon. Research demonstrates that neuronal asymmetry is not dictated solely by external cues, but rather by an internal "activator-inhibitor" system involving the ARP2/3 complex and actomyosin. Periodic actin waves originating at the cell body cause alternating phases of neurite retraction and extension, eventually biasing a single neurite toward becoming the axon. Once a neurite transitions into an axon, it stabilizes through microtubule-based growth and becomes resistant to the contractile forces that suppress the remaining neurites. By utilizing optogenetics and live imaging, the authors show that this intrinsic rhythmic mechanism ensures the development of only one axon even in growth-promoting environments. Ultimately, this cytoskeletal oscillator resolves a fundamental question of how neurons reliably organize themselves to ensure unidirectional information flow in the brain.References:Lin T, Coles C H, Alfadil E, et al. An intrinsic cytoskeletal oscillator establishes neuronal polarity[J]. Nature, 2026: 1-13.前往小宇宙评论区与主播互动