The presence and distribution of dystrophin was studied in selected areas of the chick embryo nervous system and in primary cultures. Dystrophin was examined at the protein level by immunocytochemistry and at the transcriptional level by a semiquantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction analysis. Immunofluorescence staining shows that dystrophin is present early during embryogenesis in dorsal root ganglia, spinal cord, and ciliary ganglia and colocalizes with neurofilament subunits. Cultured dorsal root ganglion, spinal cord, and ciliary ganglion neurons show immunoreactivity for dystrophin, both in cell bodies and along fibers. Dystrophin mRNA level in ciliary and dorsal root ganglia is higher than in spinal cord throughout development and shows a tissue-specific pattern of expression. In primary cultures of dorsal root ganglia and ciliary ganglia, dystrophin mRNA level increases with time in vitro. However, in spinal cord cultures, dystrophin mRNA drastically decreases with time in vitro, but it is significantly increased when embryonic muscle extract is added to the cultures. Our results show that dystrophin is present in neurons from different areas of embryonic chick nervous system and that its mRNA level is developmentally regulated both in vivo and in vitro
