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Tsytsarev V, Plachez C, Zhao S, O'Connor DH, Erzurumlu RS. Bilateral Whisker Representations in the Primary Somatosensory Cortex in Robo3cKO Mice Are Reflected in the Primary Motor Cortex. Neuroscience 2024; 544:128-137. [PMID: 38447690 PMCID: PMC11146016 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2024.02.031] [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: 09/19/2023] [Revised: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024]
Abstract
In Robo3cKO mice, midline crossing defects of the trigeminothalamic projections from the trigeminal principal sensory nucleus result in bilateral whisker maps in the somatosensory thalamus and consequently in the face representation area of the primary somatosensory (S1) cortex (Renier et al., 2017; Tsytsarev et al., 2017). We investigated whether this bilateral sensory representation in the whisker-barrel cortex is also reflected in the downstream projections from the S1 to the primary motor (M1) cortex. To label these projections, we injected anterograde viral axonal tracer in S1 cortex. Corticocortical projections from the S1 distribute to similar areas across the ipsilateral hemisphere in control and Robo3cKO mice. Namely, in both genotypes they extend to the M1, premotor/prefrontal cortex (PMPF), secondary somatosensory (S2) cortex. Next, we performed voltage-sensitive dye imaging (VSDi) in the left hemisphere following ipsilateral and contralateral single whisker stimulation. While controls showed only activation in the contralateral whisker barrel cortex and M1 cortex, the Robo3cKO mouse left hemisphere was activated bilaterally in both the barrel cortex and the M1 cortex. We conclude that the midline crossing defect of the trigeminothalamic projections leads to bilateral whisker representations not only in the thalamus and the S1 cortex but also downstream from the S1, in the M1 cortex.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vassiliy Tsytsarev
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn St, HSF-2, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
| | - Céline Plachez
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn St, HSF-2, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
| | - Shuxin Zhao
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn St, HSF-2, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
| | - Daniel H O'Connor
- The Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute, The Johns Hopkins University, 3400 N. Charles Street, 338 Krieger Hall, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA.
| | - Reha S Erzurumlu
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 20 Penn St, HSF-2, Baltimore, MD 21201, USA.
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Rastegar-Pouyani S, Kennedy TE, Kania A. Somatotopy of Mouse Spinothalamic Innervation and the Localization of a Noxious Stimulus Requires Deleted in Colorectal Carcinoma Expression by Phox2a Neurons. J Neurosci 2022; 42:7885-7899. [PMID: 36028316 PMCID: PMC9617615 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1164-22.2022] [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: 06/13/2022] [Revised: 08/07/2022] [Accepted: 08/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Anterolateral system (AS) neurons transmit pain signals from the spinal cord to the brain. Their morphology, anatomy, and physiological properties have been extensively characterized and suggest that specific AS neurons and their brain targets are concerned with the discriminatory aspects of noxious stimuli, such as their location or intensity, and their motivational/emotive dimension. Among the recently unraveled molecular markers of AS neurons is the developmentally expressed transcription factor Phox2a, providing us with the opportunity to selectively disrupt the embryonic wiring of AS neurons to gain insights into the logic of their adult function. As mice with a spinal-cord-specific loss of the netrin-1 receptor deleted in colorectal carcinoma (DCC) have increased AS neuron innervation of ipsilateral brain targets and defective noxious stimulus localization or topognosis, we generated mice of either sex carrying a deletion of Dcc in Phox2a neurons. Such DccPhox2a mice displayed impaired topognosis along the rostrocaudal axis but with little effect on left-right discrimination and normal aversive responses. Anatomical tracing experiments in DccPhox2a mice revealed defective targeting of cervical and lumbar AS axons within the thalamus. Furthermore, genetic labeling of AS axons revealed their expression of DCC on their arrival in the brain, at a time when many of their target neurons are being born and express Ntn1 Our experiments suggest a postcommissural crossing function for netrin-1:DCC signaling during the formation of somatotopically ordered maps and are consistent with a discriminatory function of some of the Phox2a AS neurons.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT How nociceptive (pain) signals are relayed from the body to the brain remains an important question relevant to our understanding of the basic physiology of pain perception. Previous studies have demonstrated that the AS is a main effector of this function. It is composed of AS neurons located in the spinal cord that receive signals from nociceptive sensory neurons that detect noxious stimuli. In this study, we generate a genetic miswiring of mouse AS neurons that results in a decreased ability to perceive the location of a painful stimulus. The precise nature of this defect sheds light on the function of different kinds of AS neurons and how pain information may be organized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shima Rastegar-Pouyani
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal, Montréal Québec H2W 1R7, Canada
- Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal Québec H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Timothy E Kennedy
- Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal Québec H3A 2B4, Canada
- Department of Neurology & Neurosurgery, Montreal Neurological Institute, McGill University, Montréal Quebéc H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Artur Kania
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal, Montréal Québec H2W 1R7, Canada
- Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal Québec H3A 2B4, Canada
- Division of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montréal Québec H3A 2B2, Canada
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, McGill University, Montréal QC H3A 0C7, Canada
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Netrin1 and reelin signaling are required for the migration of anterolateral system neurons in the embryonic spinal cord. Pain 2021; 163:e527-e539. [PMID: 34471084 DOI: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000002444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
ABSTRACT Projection neurons of the spinal cord dorsal horn which transmit pain, itch, and temperature information to the brain comprise the anterolateral system (AS). A recent molecular and genetic study showed that many developing AS neurons express the transcription factor Phox2a and provided insights into the mechanisms of their ontogeny and wiring of nociceptive neuronal circuits. Here, we show that the loss of the axonal guidance and neuronal migration signal netrin1 results in impaired migration of mouse Phox2a+ AS neurons into the spinal lamina I. Furthermore, we show that in the absence of Dab1, an intracellular transducer of the neuronal migration signal reelin, the migration of spinal lamina V and lateral spinal nucleus Phox2a+ AS neurons is impaired, in line with deficits in nociception seen in mice with a loss of reelin signaling. Together, these results provide evidence that netrin1 and reelin control the development of spinal nociceptive projection neurons, suggesting a mechanistic explanation for studies that link sequence variations in human genes encoding these neurodevelopmental signals and abnormal pain sensation.
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Sensational developments in somatosensory development? Curr Opin Neurobiol 2021; 66:212-223. [PMID: 33454646 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2020.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2020] [Revised: 12/10/2020] [Accepted: 12/12/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
This is an overview of the most recent advances pertaining to the development of the cardinal components of the somatosensory system: the peripheral sensory neurons that perceive somatosensory stimuli, the first line central nervous system circuits that modulate them, and the higher structures such as the somatosensory cortex that eventually compute a motor response to them. Here, I also review the most recent findings concerning the role of neuronal activity in somatosensory development, formation of somatotopic maps, insights into human somatosensory development and the link between aberrant somatosensation and neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Roome RB, Bourojeni FB, Mona B, Rastegar-Pouyani S, Blain R, Dumouchel A, Salesse C, Thompson WS, Brookbank M, Gitton Y, Tessarollo L, Goulding M, Johnson JE, Kmita M, Chédotal A, Kania A. Phox2a Defines a Developmental Origin of the Anterolateral System in Mice and Humans. Cell Rep 2020; 33:108425. [PMID: 33238113 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Revised: 07/21/2020] [Accepted: 11/02/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Anterolateral system neurons relay pain, itch, and temperature information from the spinal cord to pain-related brain regions, but the differentiation of these neurons and their specific contribution to pain perception remain poorly defined. Here, we show that most mouse spinal neurons that embryonically express the autonomic-system-associated Paired-like homeobox 2A (Phox2a) transcription factor innervate nociceptive brain targets, including the parabrachial nucleus and the thalamus. We define the Phox2a anterolateral system neuron birth order, migration, and differentiation and uncover an essential role for Phox2a in the development of relay of nociceptive signals from the spinal cord to the brain. Finally, we also demonstrate that the molecular identity of Phox2a neurons is conserved in the human fetal spinal cord, arguing that the developmental expression of Phox2a is a prominent feature of anterolateral system neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- R Brian Roome
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Farin B Bourojeni
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Bishakha Mona
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Shima Rastegar-Pouyani
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada
| | - Raphael Blain
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, Paris 75012, France
| | - Annie Dumouchel
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - Charleen Salesse
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - W Scott Thompson
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - Megan Brookbank
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada
| | - Yorick Gitton
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, Paris 75012, France
| | - Lino Tessarollo
- Neural Development Section, Mouse Cancer Genetics Program, National Cancer Institute, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Martyn Goulding
- Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, The Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA 92037, USA
| | - Jane E Johnson
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA; Department of Pharmacology, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX 75390, USA
| | - Marie Kmita
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Division of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B2, Canada
| | - Alain Chédotal
- Sorbonne Université, INSERM, CNRS, Institut de la Vision, Paris 75012, France
| | - Artur Kania
- Institut de Recherches Cliniques de Montréal (IRCM), Montréal, QC H2W 1R7, Canada; Integrated Program in Neuroscience, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B4, Canada; Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 0C7, Canada; Division of Experimental Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC H3A 2B2, Canada.
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