RETRACTED: Real time large scale in vivo observations reveal intrinsic synchrony, plasticity and growth cone dynamics of midline crossing axons during neuronal wiring of the zebrafish spinal cord

How axons are wired in the vertebrate spinal cord has been studied mostly using fixed samples or looking at individually growing axons. Using light-sheet microscopy, early neural development is here followed in vivo in real time at high resolution along several hundred micrometers of the zebrafish spinal cord. The dynamics and time course of cellular development and axonal wiring of interneurons expressing GFP under control of the dmrt3 promotor are analyzed. Following neurulation, commissural axons are observed crossing the ventral floor plate midline perpendicularly at about 20 microns/h and in a manner dependent on the Robo3 but not the EphA4 receptors. Ipsilateral axons extend concurrently, at three to six times higher growth rates and independently of said receptors. At guidance points, commissural axons are seen to decrease their growth rate and cones increase in size. Commissural filopodia appear on the floor plate to interact with the nascent neural network, and thereby trigger immediate plastic and reversible sinusoidal-shaped bending movements of the neighboring commissural shafts. A 3D reconstruction of the 4 dpf spinal cord demonstrates variable dmrt3 cell body position and dimensions, confirmed by single cell FlowSight analysis, and also a minor second population of commissurals crossing later and more dorsally. The recordings show the strikingly stereotyped spatio-temporal control that governs axonal wiring of the zebrafish spinal cord. The live observations give renewed perspective on the mechanisms of axonal guidance in the spinal cord that provide for a discussion of the current distinction between diffusible long-range versus substrate-bound short-range guidance cues. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.