Background to the NRP Discovery
- The first discovered NRP derived from an in vitro cultivated rat brain cell tissue.
- Specialised biochemical fractionation of the metabolized cell nutrients led to the discovery of a neuronal proliferation and migration-inducing activity.
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Diagram showing cerebellar CNS tissue cultivated for 48 hrs without NRPs (A) and with NRPs (B). Note the remarkable increase in the formation of cell-bridges (migrating neurons) as been highlighted by the opposing arrows in B. Moreover, there are new nerve fibre connections between tissues (single arrow). |
- As far as we are aware, never before has it been possible to induce neurogenesis and final differentiation of neuroblasts (cells that are about to acquire status of action potential-firing neurons incorporated into an active neural network) within highly differentiated brain tissue.
- This is especially so when the cultivated central nervous system-derived brain cells have been extracted from postnatally reared rodents.
- The subsequently purified “activity” turned out to be a small secreted peptide.

- Using bioinformatic approaches several human homologues similar to the rat peptide have been identified.
