Enzymatic removal of polysialic acid from neural cell adhesion molecule perturbs the migration route of luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone neurons in the developing chick forebrain.

During development in the chick embryo, luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) neurons migrate along the olfactory nerve from the olfactory epithelium to the forebrain. At embryonic day 5.5 (E5.5) to E6.0, the majority of LHRH neurons begin to enter the medial forebrain and then course dorsocaudally along the forebrain substance just beneath the pia matter in association with the somatostatin (SST)-positive fibers, which branch medially from the SST-positive olfactory nerve. By E6.5, the neurons and SST-positive medial branch of the olfactory nerve have proceeded toward the septal area. Intense immunoreactivity for the polysialylated form of neural cell adhesion molecule (PSA-NCAM) on both the LHRH neurons and the SST-positive fibers during this period suggests that this less adhesive form of NCAM is involved in the migratory process. This possibility was examined by using a polysialic acid (PSA)-specific endoneuraminidase. PSA removal did not alter the behavior or appearance of the SST-positive olfactory fibers within the migration pathway. However, it induced a significant deviation of migrating LHRH neurons from the regular path in the forebrain. The effect of PSA removal is more likely to involve changes in the interaction of the migrating neurons with a subset of the SST-positive olfactory fibers and/or other elements in the forebrain rather than an alteration in the pattern of their axonal substrate. On the basis of these results, it is suggested that PSA contributes to the specific pattern of LHRH neuronal migration in the forebrain by limiting interaction of these LHRH neurons with their surrounding environment. J. Comp. Neurol. 420:171–181, 2000. © 2000 Wiley-Liss, Inc.