The molecular communication mechanisms within the Motor Neurons (MN) distant axon and its soma, as well as between MN and their neighboring cells and extracellular environment are of keen interest for our understanding of neurodevelopment and neurodegenerative diseases. One tool that has significantly improved our ability to study such processes with high spatiotemporal resolution is microfluidic devices. Here we describe a step-by-step guide to the neuromuscular co-culturing procedure and demonstrate how to track trophic factors transmission from muscle-to-neuron and their transport along the axons.
Keywords: Axonal transport; BDNF; GDNF; Microfluidic chambers; Motor neurons; Neuromuscular junction; Skeletal muscles.
© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.