Pattern formation between the induction of whiskers and sensory nerves of mice

Research Project

Project/Area Number	15K21352
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Research Field	Developmental biology Neurophysiology / General neuroscience
Research Institution	Chiba University (2017) Aoyama Gakuin University (2015-2016)
Principal Investigator	Ishida Kentaro 千葉大学, 大学院医学研究院, 助教 (20707898)
Research Collaborator	MITSUI Toshiyuki 青山学院大学, 理工学部, 教授 (40406814)
Project Period (FY)	2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2017)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,160,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥960,000) Fiscal Year 2017: ¥650,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥150,000) Fiscal Year 2016: ¥650,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥150,000) Fiscal Year 2015: ¥2,860,000 (Direct Cost: ¥2,200,000、Indirect Cost: ¥660,000)
Keywords	上皮・間葉相互作用 / 器官培養 / 頬ひげ原基 / 三叉神経節 / 器官形成 / Merkel細胞 / 器官再生 / メルケル細胞 / シュワン細胞 / 皮膚再生 / Whisker-barrel pathway / 外胚葉性皮膚付属器官
Outline of Final Research Achievements	In this study, I aimed to analyze the pattern formation between the induction of whisker follicles and somatosensory nerves through development of organ culture methods in order to observe the formation of a key structure, called Merkel cell-neurite complex, on a dish. I first analyzed the complex between whisker follicles and trigeminal nerves using immunohistochemical techniques. I initially developed two distinct culture methods of a whisker pad and a trigeminal ganglion explant, and then combined them. After the co-cultivation of the whisker row with a trigeminal ganglion explant, a Merkel cell-neurite complex composed of Merkel cells, trigeminal nerve fibers and Schwann cells was observed. My method for the formation of a Merkel cell-neurite complex in an organ culture will contribute to understanding the regulatory mechanisms of the coordination between trigeminal nerves and whisker follicles.