ABSTRACT
The specificity of synapse formation by retina neurons was examined by co-culturing dissociated chick embryo or rat retina neurons with inappropriate synaptic partner cells such as striated muscle cells that possess many nicotinic acetylcholine receptors. Two processes contribute to the turnover of retina neuron synapses with myotubes. First, retina neurons are able to form synapses with striated muscle cells only for a short time during development; and second, synapses between retina neurons and myotubes terminate because retina neurons preferentially adhere to other retina cells rather than to myotubes. Adult neurons do not divide; the establishment of clonal lines of neuroblastoma cells from a transplantable mouse neuroblastoma tumor of spontaneous origin provided a source of relatively homogeneous populations of dividing cells of neural origin. Exposure of neuroblastoma or hybrid cells to dibutyryl cyclic adenosine monophosphate alters the levels of some species of polysomal messenger RNA.
