@article{ThangarajSelvarajFrankBenderetal.2012,
  author    = {Thangaraj Selvaraj, Bhuvaneish and Frank, Nicolas and Bender, Florian L. P. and Asan, Esther and Sendtner, Michael},
  title     = {Local axonal function of STAT3 rescues axon degeneration in the pmn model of motoneuron disease},
  series = {The Journal of Cell Biology},
  volume    = {199},
  journal   = {The Journal of Cell Biology},
  number    = {3},
  doi       = {10.1083/jcb.201203109},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-154675},
  pages     = {437 -- 451},
  year      = {2012},
  abstract  = {Axonal maintenance, plasticity, and regeneration are influenced by signals from neighboring cells, in particular Schwann cells of the peripheral nervous system. Schwann cells produce neurotrophic factors, but the mechanisms by which ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF) and other neurotrophic molecules modify the axonal cytoskeleton are not well understood. In this paper, we show that activated signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 (STAT3), an intracellular mediator of the effects of CNTF and other neurotrophic cytokines, acts locally in axons of motoneurons to modify the tubulin cytoskeleton. Specifically, we show that activated STAT3 interacted with stathmin and inhibited its microtubule-destabilizing activity. Thus, ectopic CNTF-mediated activation of STAT3 restored axon elongation and maintenance in motoneurons from progressive motor neuronopathy mutant mice, a mouse model of motoneuron disease. This mechanism could also be relevant for other neurodegenerative diseases and provide a target for new therapies for axonal degeneration.},
  language  = {en}
}
@phdthesis{ThangarajSelvaraj2013,
  author    = {Thangaraj Selvaraj, Bhuvaneish},
  title     = {Role of CNTF-STAT3 signaling for microtubule dynamics inaxon growth and maintenance: Implications in motoneuron diseases},
  url       = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-76889},
  school      = {Universit{\"a}t W{\"u}rzburg},
  year      = {2013},
  abstract  = {Neurotrophic factor signaling modulates differentiation, axon growth and maintenance, synaptic plasticity and regeneration of neurons after injury. Ciliary neurotrophic factor (CNTF), a Schwann cell derived neurotrophic factor, has an exclusive role in axon maintenance, sprouting and synaptic preservation. CNTF, but not GDNF, has been shown to alleviate motoneuron degeneration in pmn mutant mice carrying a missense mutation in Tbce gene, a model for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). This current study elucidates the distinct signaling mechanism by which CNTF rescues the axonal degeneration in pmn mutant mice. ...},
  subject      = {Ciliary neurotrophic factor},
  language  = {en}
}