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Chung J, Newman-Smith E, Kourakis MJ, Miao Y, Borba C, Medina J, Laurent T, Gallean B, Faure E, Smith WC. A single oscillating proto-hypothalamic neuron gates taxis behavior in the primitive chordate Ciona. Curr Biol 2023; 33:3360-3370.e4. [PMID: 37490920 PMCID: PMC10528541 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.06.080] [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: 04/21/2023] [Revised: 06/05/2023] [Accepted: 06/29/2023] [Indexed: 07/27/2023]
Abstract
Ciona larvae display a number of behaviors, including negative phototaxis. In negative phototaxis, the larvae first perform short spontaneous rhythmic casting swims. As larvae are cast in a light field, their photoreceptors are directionally shaded by an associated pigment cell, providing a phototactic cue. This then evokes an extended negative taxis swim. We report here that the larval forebrain of Ciona has a previously uncharacterized single slow-oscillating inhibitory neuron (neuron cor-assBVIN78) that projects to the midbrain, where it targets key interneurons of the phototaxis circuit known as the photoreceptor relay neurons. The anatomical location, gene expression, and oscillation of cor-assBVIN78 suggest homology to oscillating neurons of the vertebrate hypothalamus. Ablation of cor-assBVIN78 results in larvae showing extended phototaxis-like swims, even in the absence of phototactic cues. These results indicate that cor-assBVIN78 has a gating activity on phototaxis by projecting temporally oscillating inhibition to the photoreceptor relay neurons. However, in intact larvae, the frequency of cor-assBVIN78 oscillation does not match that of the rhythmic spontaneous swims, indicating that the troughs in oscillations do not themselves initiate swims but rather that cor-assBVIN78 may modulate the phototaxis circuit by filtering out low-level inputs while restricting them temporally to the troughs in inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janeva Chung
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Erin Newman-Smith
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Matthew J Kourakis
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Yishen Miao
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Cezar Borba
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Juan Medina
- College of Creative Studies, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Tao Laurent
- Laboratoire d'Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - Benjamin Gallean
- Centre de Recherche de Biologie cellulaire de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - Emmanuel Faure
- Laboratoire d'Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - William C Smith
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA; Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.
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2
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Chung J, Newman-Smith E, Kourakis MJ, Miao Y, Borba C, Medina J, Laurent T, Gallean B, Faure E, Smith WC. A single oscillating proto-hypothalamic neuron gates taxis behavior in the primitive chordate Ciona. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.24.538092. [PMID: 37162881 PMCID: PMC10168268 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.24.538092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Ciona larvae display a number of behaviors, including negative phototaxis. In negative phototaxis, the larvae first perform short spontaneous rhythmic casting swims. As larvae cast in a light field, their photoreceptors are directionally shaded by an associated pigment cell, providing a phototactic cue. This then evokes an extended negative taxis swim. We report here that the larval forebrain of Ciona has a previously uncharacterized single slow-oscillating inhibitory neuron (neuron cor-assBVIN78 ) that projects to the midbrain, where it targets key interneurons of the phototaxis circuit known as the photoreceptor relay neurons . The anatomical location, gene expression and oscillation of cor-assBVIN78 suggest homology to oscillating neurons of the vertebrate hypothalamus. Ablation of cor-assBVIN78 results in larvae showing extended phototaxis-like swims, but which occur in the absence of phototactic cues. These results indicate that cor-assBVIN78 has a gating activity on phototaxis by projecting temporally-oscillating inhibition to the photoreceptor relay neurons. However, in intact larvae the frequency of cor-assBVIN78 oscillation does not match that of the rhythmic spontaneous swims, indicating that the troughs in oscillations do not themselves initiate swims, but rather that cor-assBVIN78 may modulate the phototaxis circuit by filtering out low level inputs while restricting them temporally to the troughs in inhibition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janeva Chung
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Erin Newman-Smith
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Matthew J. Kourakis
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Yishen Miao
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Cezar Borba
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Juan Medina
- College of Creative Studies, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
| | - Tao Laurent
- Laboratoire d’Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier,CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - Benjamin Gallean
- Centre de Recherche de Biologie cellulaire de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - Emmanuel Faure
- Laboratoire d’Informatique, de Robotique et de Microélectronique de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier,CNRS, Montpellier, France
| | - William C Smith
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA 93106
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Kourakis MJ, Borba C, Zhang A, Newman-Smith E, Salas P, Manjunath B, Smith WC. Parallel visual circuitry in a basal chordate. eLife 2019; 8:44753. [PMID: 30998184 PMCID: PMC6499539 DOI: 10.7554/elife.44753] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2018] [Accepted: 04/11/2019] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
A common CNS architecture is observed in all chordates, from vertebrates to basal chordates like the ascidian Ciona. Ciona stands apart among chordates in having a complete larval connectome. Starting with visuomotor circuits predicted by the Ciona connectome, we used expression maps of neurotransmitter use with behavioral assays to identify two parallel visuomotor circuits that are responsive to different components of visual stimuli. The first circuit is characterized by glutamatergic photoreceptors and responds to the direction of light. These photoreceptors project to cholinergic motor neurons, via two tiers of cholinergic interneurons. The second circuit responds to changes in ambient light and mediates an escape response. This circuit uses GABAergic photoreceptors which project to GABAergic interneurons, and then to cholinergic interneurons. Our observations on the behavior of larvae either treated with a GABA receptor antagonist or carrying a mutation that eliminates photoreceptors indicate the second circuit is disinhibitory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Kourakis
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Cezar Borba
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Angela Zhang
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Erin Newman-Smith
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States.,Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Priscilla Salas
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - B Manjunath
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - William C Smith
- Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States.,Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
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The central nervous system of ascidian larvae. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS-DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 2016; 5:538-61. [DOI: 10.1002/wdev.239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2016] [Revised: 04/05/2016] [Accepted: 04/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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Abdul-Wajid S, Morales-Diaz H, Khairallah SM, Smith WC. T-type Calcium Channel Regulation of Neural Tube Closure and EphrinA/EPHA Expression. Cell Rep 2015; 13:829-839. [PMID: 26489462 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2015.09.035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2015] [Revised: 08/06/2015] [Accepted: 09/11/2015] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
Abstract
A major class of human birth defects arise from aberrations during neural tube closure (NTC). We report on a NTC signaling pathway requiring T-type calcium channels (TTCCs) that is conserved between primitive chordates (Ciona) and Xenopus. With loss of TTCCs, there is a failure to seal the anterior neural folds. Accompanying loss of TTCCs is an upregulation of EphrinA effectors. Ephrin signaling is known to be important in NTC, and ephrins can affect both cell adhesion and repulsion. In Ciona, ephrinA-d expression is downregulated at the end of neurulation, whereas, with loss of TTCC, ephrinA-d remains elevated. Accordingly, overexpression of ephrinA-d phenocopied TTCC loss of function, while overexpression of a dominant-negative Ephrin receptor was able to rescue NTC in a Ciona TTCC mutant. We hypothesize that signaling through TTCCs is necessary for proper anterior NTC through downregulation of ephrins, and possibly elimination of a repulsive signal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Abdul-Wajid
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Heidi Morales-Diaz
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Stephanie M Khairallah
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - William C Smith
- Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, and Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.
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Crocetta F, Marino R, Cirino P, Macina A, Staiano L, Esposito R, Pezzotti MR, Racioppi C, Toscano F, De Felice E, Locascio A, Ristoratore F, Spagnuolo A, Zanetti L, Branno M, Sordino P. Mutation studies in ascidians: a review. Genesis 2014; 53:160-9. [PMID: 25395385 DOI: 10.1002/dvg.22837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2014] [Revised: 11/06/2014] [Accepted: 11/11/2014] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Historically, mutations have had a significant impact on the study of developmental processes and phenotypic evolution. Lesions in DNA are created by artificial methods or detected by natural genetic variation. Random mutations are then ascribed to genetic change by direct sequencing or positional cloning. Tunicate species of the ascidian genus Ciona represent nearly fully realized model systems in which gene function can be investigated in depth. Additionally, tunicates are valuable organisms for the study of naturally occurring mutations due to the capability to exploit genetic variation down to the molecular level. Here, we summarize the available information about how mutations are studied in ascidians with examples of insights that have resulted from these applications. We also describe notions and methodologies that might be useful for the implementation of easy and tight procedures for mutations studies in Ciona.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabio Crocetta
- Laboratory of Cellular and Developmental Biology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Villa Comunale, Naples, Italy
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Hackley C, Mulholland E, Kim GJ, Newman-Smith E, Smith WC. A transiently expressed connexin is essential for anterior neural plate development in Ciona intestinalis. Development 2012; 140:147-55. [PMID: 23175630 DOI: 10.1242/dev.084681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
A forward genetic screen in the ascidian Ciona intestinalis identified a mutant line (frimousse) with a profound disruption in neural plate development. In embryos with the frimousse mutation, the anteriormost neural plate cells, which are products of an FGF induction at the blastula and gastrula stages, initially express neural plate-specific genes but fail to maintain the induced state and ultimately default to epidermis. The genetic lesion in the frimousse mutant lies within a connexin gene (cx-11) that is transiently expressed in the developing neural plate in a temporal window corresponding to the period of a-lineage neural induction. Using a genetically encoded calcium indicator we observed multiple calcium transients throughout the developing neural plate in wild-type embryos, but not in mutant embryos. A series of treatments at the gastrula and neurula stages that block the calcium transients, including gap junction inhibition and calcium depletion, were also found to disrupt the development of the anterior neural plate in a similar way to the frimousse mutation. The requirement for cx-11 for anterior neural fate points to a crucial role for intercellular communication via gap junctions, probably through mediation of Ca(2+) transients, in Ciona intestinalis neural induction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher Hackley
- Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
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Abstract
The tunicates, or urochordates, constitute a large group of marine animals whose recent common ancestry with vertebrates is reflected in the tadpole-like larvae of most tunicates. Their diversity and key phylogenetic position are enhanced, from a research viewpoint, by anatomically simple and transparent embryos, compact rapidly evolving genomes, and the availability of powerful experimental and computational tools with which to study these organisms. Tunicates are thus a powerful system for exploring chordate evolution and how extreme variation in genome sequence and gene regulatory network architecture is compatible with the preservation of an ancestral chordate body plan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick Lemaire
- Institut du Biologie de Développement de Marseille Luminy (IBDML, UMR 6216, CNRS, Université de la Méditerranée), Parc Scientifique de Luminy Case 907, F-13288, Marseille Cedex 9, France
- Centre de Recherches en Biochimie Macromoléculaire (CRBM, UMR5237, CNRS, Universités Montpellier 1 and 2), 1919 route de Mende, F-34293, Montpellier Cedex 05, France
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Veeman MT, Newman-Smith E, El-Nachef D, Smith WC. The ascidian mouth opening is derived from the anterior neuropore: reassessing the mouth/neural tube relationship in chordate evolution. Dev Biol 2010; 344:138-49. [PMID: 20438724 DOI: 10.1016/j.ydbio.2010.04.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2010] [Revised: 04/22/2010] [Accepted: 04/23/2010] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
The relative positions of the brain and mouth are of central importance for models of chordate evolution. The dorsal hollow neural tube and the mouth have often been thought of as developmentally distinct structures that may have followed independent evolutionary paths. In most chordates however, including vertebrates and ascidians, the mouth primordia have been shown to fate to the anterior neural boundary. In ascidians such as Ciona there is a particularly intimate relationship between brain and mouth development, with a thin canal connecting the neural tube lumen to the mouth primordium at larval stages. This so-called neurohypophyseal canal was previously thought to be a secondary connection that formed relatively late, after the independent formation of the mouth primordium and the neural tube. Here we show that the Ciona neurohypophyseal canal is present from the end of neurulation and represents the anteriormost neural tube, and that the future mouth opening is actually derived from the anterior neuropore. The mouth thus forms at the anterior midline transition between neural tube and surface ectoderm. In the vertebrate Xenopus, we find that although the mouth primordium is not topologically continuous with the neural tube lumen, it nonetheless forms at this same transition point. This close association between the mouth primordium and the anterior neural tube in both ascidians and amphibians suggests that the evolution of these two structures may be more closely linked than previously appreciated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael T Veeman
- Department of Molecular, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
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Sordino P, Andreakis N, Brown ER, Leccia NI, Squarzoni P, Tarallo R, Alfano C, Caputi L, D'Ambrosio P, Daniele P, D'Aniello E, D'Aniello S, Maiella S, Miraglia V, Russo MT, Sorrenti G, Branno M, Cariello L, Cirino P, Locascio A, Spagnuolo A, Zanetti L, Ristoratore F. Natural variation of model mutant phenotypes in Ciona intestinalis. PLoS One 2008; 3:e2344. [PMID: 18523552 PMCID: PMC2391289 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0002344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2007] [Accepted: 04/17/2008] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The study of ascidians (Chordata, Tunicata) has made a considerable contribution to our understanding of the origin and evolution of basal chordates. To provide further information to support forward genetics in Ciona intestinalis, we used a combination of natural variation and neutral population genetics as an approach for the systematic identification of new mutations. In addition to the significance of developmental variation for phenotype-driven studies, this approach can encompass important implications in evolutionary and population biology. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS Here, we report a preliminary survey for naturally occurring mutations in three geographically interconnected populations of C. intestinalis. The influence of historical, geographical and environmental factors on the distribution of abnormal phenotypes was assessed by means of 12 microsatellites. We identified 37 possible mutant loci with stereotyped defects in embryonic development that segregate in a way typical of recessive alleles. Local populations were found to differ in genetic organization and frequency distribution of phenotypic classes. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE Natural genetic polymorphism of C. intestinalis constitutes a valuable source of phenotypes for studying embryonic development in ascidians. Correlating genetic structure and the occurrence of abnormal phenotypes is a crucial focus for understanding the selective forces that shape natural finite populations, and may provide insights of great importance into the evolutionary mechanisms that generate animal diversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paolo Sordino
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy.
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Marino R, Melillo D, Di Filippo M, Yamada A, Pinto MR, De Santis R, Brown ER, Matassi G. Ammonium channel expression is essential for brain development and function in the larva ofCiona intestinalis. J Comp Neurol 2007; 503:135-47. [PMID: 17480017 DOI: 10.1002/cne.21370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Ammonium uptake into the cell is known to be mediated by ammonium transport (Amt) proteins, which are present in all domains of life. The physiological role of Amt proteins remains elusive; indeed, loss-of-function experiments suggested that Amt proteins do not play an essential role in bacteria, yeast, and plants. Here we show that the reverse holds true in the tunicate Ciona intestinalis. The genome of C. intestinalis contains two AMT genes, Ci-AMT1a and Ci-AMT1b, which we show derive from an ascidian-specific gene duplication. We analyzed Ci-AMT expression during embryo development. Notably, Ci-AMT1a is expressed in the larval brain in a small number of cells defining a previously unseen V-shaped territory; these cells connect the brain cavity to the external environment. We show that the knockdown of Ci-AMT1a impairs the formation of the brain cavity and consequently the function of the otolith, the gravity-sensing organ contained in it. We speculate that the normal mechanical functioning (flotation and free movement) of the otolith may require a close regulation of ammonium salt(s) concentration in the brain cavity, because ammonium is known to affect both fluid density and viscosity; the cells forming the V territory may act as a conduit in achieving such a regulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Marino
- Stazione Zoologica A Dohrn, Villa Comunale, Napoli, Italy
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