Gd. Mower et Km. Rosen, DEVELOPMENTAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL-CHANGES IN GAP-43 GENE-EXPRESSION IN CAT VISUAL-CORTEX, Molecular brain research, 20(3), 1993, pp. 254-258
Northern/slot blot analysis was used to determine postnatal developmen
tal and environmentally induced changes in the level of expression of
GAP-43 mRNA in visual and frontal cortex. Both structures showed a pre
cipitous decline during the first 5 weeks and a slight further decline
to adult levels. Dark rearing resulted in a significant elevation of
GAP-43 mRNA which was eliminated by brief visual experience. This effe
ct was specific to visual cortex and did not occur in frontal cortex.
The effect also did not occur in normal adult cats placed in prolonged
darkness, indicating that GAP-43 mRNA levels are not simply activity
dependent and are altered by visual input only during early postnatal
life. These results are consistent with a role for GAP-43 in the state
of visual cortical plasticity.