Texas A&M University researchers have developed a method to image and evaluate mitochondria inside terminal Schwann cells while preserving the cells' natural structure. The work could help researchers study how the cells respond to nerve injury, disease and recovery.
The method is described in the *Journal of Visualized Experiments*, and the university announced it Oct. 12. Dr. Aaron Morton, an assistant professor in Texas A&M's Department of Kinesiology and Sport Management, is involved in the research.
Terminal Schwann cells help maintain and repair connections between nerves and muscles at the neuromuscular junction, where a nerve communicates with a muscle. After an injury, Schwann cells can change shape, move into the damaged area, help clear debris and release growth factors that support healing. They can also form a pathway that guides a regenerating nerve.
Those changes create a challenge for researchers because the cells may begin changing shape as soon as they are removed from their natural environment. Normally, terminal Schwann cells have a shape Morton compared to a pretzel. When they sense injury or disruption, they can lose that structure and become spherical.
The researchers focused on mitochondria, which use oxygen to produce energy and form networks that connect and separate. Their shape and organization can provide information about how well they function. Terminal Schwann cells are embedded in muscle, however, and dyes used to label mitochondria can also illuminate mitochondria in the surrounding muscle. The team's technique labels the mitochondria inside the Schwann cells before much of the dye reaches the nearby muscle, then moves quickly to prepare the tissue for imaging.
