Abrineurin

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a member of the neurotrophin family of growth factors that includes NGF, NT-3, and NT-4. All neurotrophins have six conserved cysteine residues and share a 55% sequence identity at the amino acid level. BDNF has been shown to enhance the survival and differentiation of several classes of neurons in vitro, including neural crest and placode-derived sensory neurons, dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, basal forebrain cholinergic neurons, hippocampal neurons, and retinal ganglial cells.1 BDNF is expressed within peripheral ganglia and is not restricted to neuronal target fields, raising the possibility that BDNF has paracrine or even autocrine actions on neurons as well as non-neuronal cells.2