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Dasgupta S, Meirovitch Y, Zheng X, Bush I, Lichtman JW, Navlakha S. A neural algorithm for computing bipartite matchings. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321032121. [PMID: 39226341 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321032121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2024] [Indexed: 09/05/2024] Open
Abstract
Finding optimal bipartite matchings-e.g., matching medical students to hospitals for residency, items to buyers in an auction, or papers to reviewers for peer review-is a fundamental combinatorial optimization problem. We found a distributed algorithm for computing matchings by studying the development of the neuromuscular circuit. The neuromuscular circuit can be viewed as a bipartite graph formed between motor neurons and muscle fibers. In newborn animals, neurons and fibers are densely connected, but after development, each fiber is typically matched (i.e., connected) to exactly one neuron. We cast this synaptic pruning process as a distributed matching (or assignment) algorithm, where motor neurons "compete" with each other to "win" muscle fibers. We show that this algorithm is simple to implement, theoretically sound, and effective in practice when evaluated on real-world bipartite matching problems. Thus, insights from the development of neural circuits can inform the design of algorithms for fundamental computational problems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanjoy Dasgupta
- Computer Science and Engineering Department, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92037
| | - Yaron Meirovitch
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Xingyu Zheng
- Simons Center for Quantitative Biology, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724
| | - Inle Bush
- Simons Center for Quantitative Biology, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724
| | - Jeff W Lichtman
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138
| | - Saket Navlakha
- Simons Center for Quantitative Biology, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724
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Borjon JI, Abney DH, Yu C, Smith LB. Infant vocal productions coincide with body movements. Dev Sci 2024; 27:e13491. [PMID: 38433472 PMCID: PMC11161311 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 02/14/2024] [Accepted: 02/21/2024] [Indexed: 03/05/2024]
Abstract
Producing recognizable words is a difficult motor task; a one-syllable word can require the coordination of over 80 muscles. Thus, it is not surprising that the development of word productions in infancy lags considerably behind receptive language and is a known limiting factor in language development. A large literature has focused on the vocal apparatus, its articulators, and language development. There has been limited study of the relations between non-speech motor skills and the quality of early speech productions. Here we present evidence that the spontaneous vocalizations of 9- to 24-month-old infants recruit extraneous, synergistic co-activations of hand and head movements and that the temporal precision of the co-activation of vocal and extraneous muscle groups tightens with age and improved recognizability of speech. These results implicate an interaction between the muscle groups that produce speech and other body movements and provide new empirical pathways for understanding the role of motor development in language acquisition. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: The spontaneous vocalizations of 9- to 24-month-old infants recruit extraneous, synergistic co-activations of hand and head movements. The temporal precision of these hand and head movements during vocal production tighten with age and improved speech recognition. These results implicate an interaction between the muscle groups producing speech with other body movements. These results provide new empirical pathways for understanding the role of motor development in language acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy I. Borjon
- Department of Psychology, University of Houston, Houston, USA
- Texas Institute for Measurement, Evaluation, and Statistics, University of Houston, Houston, USA
- Texas Center for Learning Disorders, University of Houston, Houston, USA
| | - Drew H. Abney
- Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, USA
| | - Chen Yu
- Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, USA
| | - Linda B. Smith
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, USA
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Hedrick NG, Wright WJ, Komiyama T. Local and global predictors of synapse elimination during motor learning. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadk0540. [PMID: 38489360 PMCID: PMC10942101 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adk0540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024]
Abstract
During learning, synaptic connections between excitatory neurons in the brain display considerable dynamism, with new connections being added and old connections eliminated. Synapse elimination offers an opportunity to understand the features of synapses that the brain deems dispensable. However, with limited observations of synaptic activity and plasticity in vivo, the features of synapses subjected to elimination remain poorly understood. Here, we examined the functional basis of synapse elimination in the apical dendrites of L2/3 neurons in the primary motor cortex throughout motor learning. We found no evidence that synapse elimination is facilitated by a lack of activity or other local forms of plasticity. Instead, eliminated synapses display asynchronous activity with nearby synapses, suggesting that functional synaptic clustering is a critical component of synapse survival. In addition, eliminated synapses show delayed activity timing with respect to postsynaptic output. Thus, synaptic inputs that fail to be co-active with their neighboring synapses or are mistimed with neuronal output are targeted for elimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan G. Hedrick
- Department of Neurobiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Center for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - William J. Wright
- Department of Neurobiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Center for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
| | - Takaki Komiyama
- Department of Neurobiology, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Center for Neural Circuits and Behavior, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
- Halıcıoğlu Data Science Institute, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
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Polishchuk A, Cilleros-Mañé V, Just-Borràs L, Balanyà-Segura M, Vandellòs Pont G, Silvera Simón C, Tomàs M, Garcia N, Tomàs J, Lanuza MA. Synaptic retrograde regulation of the PKA-induced SNAP-25 and Synapsin-1 phosphorylation. Cell Mol Biol Lett 2023; 28:17. [PMID: 36869288 PMCID: PMC9985302 DOI: 10.1186/s11658-023-00431-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 03/05/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Bidirectional communication between presynaptic and postsynaptic components contribute to the homeostasis of the synapse. In the neuromuscular synapse, the arrival of the nerve impulse at the presynaptic terminal triggers the molecular mechanisms associated with ACh release, which can be retrogradely regulated by the resulting muscle contraction. This retrograde regulation, however, has been poorly studied. At the neuromuscular junction (NMJ), protein kinase A (PKA) enhances neurotransmitter release, and the phosphorylation of the molecules of the release machinery including synaptosomal associated protein of 25 kDa (SNAP-25) and Synapsin-1 could be involved. METHODS Accordingly, to study the effect of synaptic retrograde regulation of the PKA subunits and its activity, we stimulated the rat phrenic nerve (1 Hz, 30 min) resulting or not in contraction (abolished by µ-conotoxin GIIIB). Changes in protein levels and phosphorylation were detected by western blotting and cytosol/membrane translocation by subcellular fractionation. Synapsin-1 was localized in the levator auris longus (LAL) muscle by immunohistochemistry. RESULTS Here we show that synaptic PKA Cβ subunit regulated by RIIβ or RIIα subunits controls activity-dependent phosphorylation of SNAP-25 and Synapsin-1, respectively. Muscle contraction retrogradely downregulates presynaptic activity-induced pSynapsin-1 S9 while that enhances pSNAP-25 T138. Both actions could coordinately contribute to decreasing the neurotransmitter release at the NMJ. CONCLUSION This provides a molecular mechanism of the bidirectional communication between nerve terminals and muscle cells to balance the accurate process of ACh release, which could be important to characterize molecules as a therapy for neuromuscular diseases in which neuromuscular crosstalk is impaired.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aleksandra Polishchuk
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Víctor Cilleros-Mañé
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Laia Just-Borràs
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Marta Balanyà-Segura
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Genís Vandellòs Pont
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Carolina Silvera Simón
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Marta Tomàs
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Neus Garcia
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain
| | - Josep Tomàs
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain.
| | - Maria A Lanuza
- Unitat d'Histologia i Neurobiologia (UHNEUROB), Departament de Ciències Mèdiques Bàsiques, Facultat de Medicina i Ciències de la Salut, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, c/ Sant Llorenç 21, 43201, Reus, Spain.
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Udvary D, Harth P, Macke JH, Hege HC, de Kock CPJ, Sakmann B, Oberlaender M. The impact of neuron morphology on cortical network architecture. Cell Rep 2022; 39:110677. [PMID: 35417720 PMCID: PMC9035680 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2022.110677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2020] [Revised: 09/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The neurons in the cerebral cortex are not randomly interconnected. This specificity in wiring can result from synapse formation mechanisms that connect neurons, depending on their electrical activity and genetically defined identity. Here, we report that the morphological properties of the neurons provide an additional prominent source by which wiring specificity emerges in cortical networks. This morphologically determined wiring specificity reflects similarities between the neurons’ axo-dendritic projections patterns, the packing density, and the cellular diversity of the neuropil. The higher these three factors are, the more recurrent is the topology of the network. Conversely, the lower these factors are, the more feedforward is the network’s topology. These principles predict the empirically observed occurrences of clusters of synapses, cell type-specific connectivity patterns, and nonrandom network motifs. Thus, we demonstrate that wiring specificity emerges in the cerebral cortex at subcellular, cellular, and network scales from the specific morphological properties of its neuronal constituents. Neuronal network architectures reflect the morphologies of their constituents Morphology predicts nonrandom connectivity from subcellular to network scales Morphology predicts connectivity patterns consistent with those observed empirically Neuron morphology is a major source for wiring specificity in the cerebral cortex
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Udvary
- In Silico Brain Sciences Group, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior - caesar, Ludwig Erhard Allee 2, 53175 Bonn, Germany
| | - Philipp Harth
- Department of Visual and Data-Centric Computing, Zuse Institute Berlin, Takustraße 7, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Jakob H Macke
- Machine Learning in Science, Tübingen University, Maria von Linden Straße 6, 72076 Tübingen, Germany
| | - Hans-Christian Hege
- Department of Visual and Data-Centric Computing, Zuse Institute Berlin, Takustraße 7, 14195 Berlin, Germany
| | - Christiaan P J de Kock
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1085, 1081 Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Bert Sakmann
- Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Marcel Oberlaender
- In Silico Brain Sciences Group, Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior - caesar, Ludwig Erhard Allee 2, 53175 Bonn, Germany.
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Zempo B, Yamamoto Y, Williams T, Ono F. Synaptic silencing of fast muscle is compensated by rewired innervation of slow muscle. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2020; 6:eaax8382. [PMID: 32284992 PMCID: PMC7141830 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aax8382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2019] [Accepted: 01/09/2020] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
For decades, numerous studies have proposed that fast muscles contribute to quick movement, while slow muscles underlie locomotion requiring endurance. By generating mutant zebrafish whose fast muscles are synaptically silenced, we examined the contribution of fast muscles in both larval and adult zebrafish. In the larval stage, mutants lacked the characteristic startle response to tactile stimuli: bending of the trunk (C-bend) followed by robust forward propulsion. Unexpectedly, adult mutants with silenced fast muscles showed robust C-bends and forward propulsion upon stimulation. Retrograde labeling revealed that motor neurons genetically programmed to form synapses on fast muscles are instead rerouted and innervate slow muscles, which led to partial conversion of slow and intermediate muscles to fast muscles. Thus, extended silencing of fast muscle synapses changed motor neuron innervation and caused muscle cell type conversion, revealing an unexpected mechanism of locomotory adaptation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Buntaro Zempo
- Department of Physiology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki 569-8686, Japan
| | - Yasuhiro Yamamoto
- Department of Physiology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki 569-8686, Japan
| | - Tory Williams
- Laboratory of Molecular Physiology, NIAAA, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
| | - Fumihito Ono
- Department of Physiology, Osaka Medical College, Takatsuki 569-8686, Japan
- Laboratory of Molecular Physiology, NIAAA, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
- Corresponding author.
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Grassi F, Fucile S. Calcium influx through muscle nAChR-channels: One route, multiple roles. Neuroscience 2019; 439:117-124. [PMID: 30999028 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2019] [Revised: 04/01/2019] [Accepted: 04/04/2019] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
Although Ca2+ influx through muscle nAChR-channels has been described over the past 40 years, its functions remain still poorly understood. In this review we suggest possible roles of Ca2+ entry at all stages of muscle development, summarizing the evidence present in literature. nAChRs are expressed in myoblasts prior to fusion, and can be activated in the absence of an ACh-releasing nerve terminal, with Ca2+ influx likely contributing to regulate cell fusion. Upon establishment of nerve-muscle contact, Ca2+ influx contributes to orchestrate the signaling required for the correct formation of the neuromuscular junction. Finally, in the mature synapse, Ca2+ entry through postsynaptic nAChR-channels - highly Ca2+ permeable, in particular in humans - acts on K+ and Na+ channels to shape endplate excitability. However, when genetic defects cause excessive channel activation, Ca2+ influx becomes toxic and causes endplate myopathy. Throughout the review, we highlight how Ricardo Miledi has contributed to construct this whole body of knowledge, from the initial description of Ca2+ permeability of endplate nAChR channels, to the rationale for the treatment of endplate excitotoxic damage under pathological conditions. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled: SI: Honoring Ricardo Miledi - outstanding neuroscientist of XX-XXI centuries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Grassi
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sapienza University, piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185, Rome, Italy.
| | - Sergio Fucile
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sapienza University, piazzale Aldo Moro 5, 00185, Rome, Italy; IRCCS Neuromed, Viale dell'Elettronica, 86077, Pozzilli, Italy
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