Interstitial axon branching regulation and function in cortical projection neurons
Interstitial axon branching (also known as ‘collateral’ branching) in cortical excitatory projection neurons is a major source of axon branches in the brain.
It can be a neural activity-independent or activity-dependent process. Intracortical interstitial axon branching is stereotyped and laminar-specific.
Distinct interstitial axon branching patterns are present in long axon tracts. For example, interstitial axon branching is restricted in the corpus callosum but promoted in the internal capsule, cerebral peduncle, and pyramid.
Advances in precise neuronal labeling allow for a systematic investigation into cortical projection neuron axon morphologies in vivo, but the identity of membrane-bound or extracellular cues that mediate interstitial axon branching in cortical and subcortical regions remains largely unexplored.
https://www.cell.com/trends/neurosciences/fulltext/S0166-2236(26)00053-6
