The localization of alpha E- and alpha N-catenin in dorsal root ganglia and spinal cord was examined immunocytochemically. Alpha E- and alpha N-catenin appeared to be co-localized in cell bodies of neurons in dorsal root ganglia, but alpha N-catenin was not expressed in cell bodies of neurons in the ventral horn that showed alpha E-catenin expression. These findings indicate the possibility that the type of alpha catenin expressed in neurons differs with its functional property (e.g. sensory or motor).