Antoneta Gavoci

Abstract Developmental remodeling shapes neural circuits via activity-dependent pruning of synapses and axons. Regulation of the cytoskeleton is critical for this process, as microtubule loss via enzymatic severing is an early step of pruning across many circuits and species. However, how microtubule-severing enzymes, such as spastin, are activated in specific neuronal compartments remains unknown.

Abstract Various species of non‐coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are enriched in specific subcellular compartments, but the mechanisms orchestrating their localization and their local functions remain largely unknown. We investigated both aspects using the elongating retinal ganglion cell axon and its tip, the growth cone, as models. We reveal that specific endogenous precursor microRNAs (pre‐miRNAs) are actively trafficked to distal axons by hitchhiking primarily on late endosomes/lysosomes.