Origin and significance of two pairs of head tentacles in the radiation of euthyneuran sea slugs and land snails

The gastropod infraclass Euthyneura comprises at least 30,000 species of snails and slugs, including nudibranch sea slugs, sea hares and garden snails, that flourish in various environments on earth. A unique morphological feature of Euthyneura is the presence of two pairs of sensory head tentacles with different shapes and functions: the anterior labial tentacles and the posterior rhinophores or eyestalks. Here we combine molecular phylogenetic and microanatomical evidence that suggests the two pairs of head tentacles have originated by splitting of the original single tentacle pair (with two parallel nerve cords in each tentacle) as seen in many other gastropods. Minute deep-sea snails of Tjaernoeia and Parvaplustrum, which in our phylogeny belonged to the euthyneurans’ sister group (new infraclass Mesoneura), have tentacles that are split along much of their lengths but associated nerves and epidermal sense organs are not as specialized as in Euthyneura. We suggest that further elaboration of cephalic sense organs in Euthyneura closely coincided with their ecological radiation and drastic modification of body plans. The monotypic family Parvaplustridae nov., superfamily Tjaernoeioidea nov. (Tjaernoeiidae + Parvaplustridae), and new major clade Tetratentaculata nov. (Mesoneura nov. + Euthyneura) are also proposed based on their phylogenetic relationships and shared morphological traits.

FxRIamide regulates the oscillatory activity in the olfactory center of the terrestrial slug Limax

The terrestrial slug Limax acquires odor-aversion memory. The procerebrum is the secondary olfactory center in the brain of Limax, and functions as the locus of the memory formation and storage. The change in the local field potential oscillation in the procerebrum reflects the information processing of the learned odor. However, it is not fully understood what factors, intrinsic or extrinsic in the procerebrum, alter the oscillatory activity and how it is regulated. In the present study, we found that FxRIamide (Phe-x-Arg-Ile-NH₂), which was previously identified as a myomodulatory peptide in the gastropod Fusinus ferrugineus, downregulates the oscillatory frequency of the local field potential oscillation in the procerebrum of Limax. FxRIamide peptides were encoded by two distinct transcripts, which exhibit partially overlapping expression patterns in the brain. Immunohistochemical staining revealed a scattered distribution of FxRIamide-expressing neurons in the cell mass layer of the procerebrum, in addition to the ramified innervation of FxRIamidergic neurons in the neuropile layers. Down-regulation of the oscillatory frequency of the local field potential was explained by the inhibitory effects of FxRIamide on the bursting neurons, which are the kernels of the local field potential oscillation in the procerebrum. Our study revealed the previously unidentified role of FxRIamide peptides in the network of interneurons of Limax, and these peptides may play a role in the mnemonic functions of the procerebrum.

Context-Dependent Passive Avoidance Learning in the Terrestrial Slug Limax

The terrestrial slug Limax has been used as a model animal for studying the neural mechanisms underlying associative olfactory learning. The slug also innately exhibits negative phototactic behavior using its eyes. In the present study, we developed an experimental paradigm for quantification of slug's negative phototaxis behavior, and investigated whether the nature of the negative phototaxis can be modified by learning experience. The experimental set-up consists of light and dark compartments, between which the slug can move freely. During conditioning, the slug was placed in the light compartment, and an aversive stimulus (quinidine sulfate solution) was applied when it reached the dark compartment. After a single conditioning session, the time to reach the dark compartment significantly increased when it was tested following 24 hr or one week. Protein synthesis inhibition immediately following the conditioning impaired the memory retention at one week but not at 24 hr. The retrieval of the memory was context-dependent, as the time to reach the dark compartment did not significantly increase if the slug was placed on a floor with a different texture in the memory retention test. If the aversive stimulus was applied when the slug was in the light compartment, the time to reach the dark compartment did not increase after 24 hr. This is the first report demonstrating the capability of the slug to form context-dependent passive avoidance memory that can be established in a single conditioning session.

RFamidergic neurons in the olfactory centers of the terrestrial slug Limax

BACKGROUND

The terrestrial slug Limax has long been used as a model for the study of olfactory information processing and odor learning. Olfactory inputs from the olfactory epithelium are processed in the tentacular ganglion and then in the procerebrum. Glutamate and acetylcholine are the major neurotransmitters used in the procerebrum. Phe-Met-Arg-Phe-NH₂ (FMRFamide) has been shown to be involved in the regulation of the network activity of the procerebrum. Although there are thought to be various RFamide family peptides other than FMRFamide that are potentially recognized by anti-FMRFamide antibody in the central nervous system of mollusks, identifying the entire repertoire of RFamide peptides in Limax has yet to be achieved.

METHODS

In the present study, we made a comprehensive search for RFamide peptide-encoding genes from the transcriptome data of Limax, and identified 12 genes. The expression maps of these RFamide genes were constructed by in situ hybridization in the cerebral ganglia including the procerebrum, and in the superior/inferior tentacles.

RESULTS

Ten of 12 genes were expressed in the procerebrum, and nine of 12 genes were expressed in the tentacular ganglia. Gly-Ser-Leu-Phe-Arg-Phe-NH₂ (GSLFRFamide), which is encoded by two different genes, LFRFamide1 (Leu-Phe-Arg-Phe-NH₂-1) and LFRFamide2 (Leu-Phe-Arg-Phe-NH₂-2), decreased the oscillatory frequency of the local field potential oscillation in the procerebrum when exogenously applied in vitro. We also found by immunohistochemistry that the neurons expressing pedal peptide send efferent projections from the procerebrum back to the tentacular ganglion.

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest the involvement of a far wider variety of RFamide family peptides in the olfactory information processing in Limax than previously thought.

Do terrestrial gastropods use olfactory cues to locate and select food actively?

Having been investigated for over 40 years, some aspects of the biology of terrestrial gastropod's olfactory system have been challenging and highly contentious, while others still remain unresolved. For example, a number of terrestrial gastropod species can track the odor of food, while others have no strong preferences toward food odor; rather they find it by random encounter. Here, while assessing the most recent findings and comparing them with earlier studies, the aspects of the food selection based on olfactory cues are examined critically to highlight the speculations and controversies that have arisen. We analyzed and compared the potential role of airborne odors in the feeding behavior of several terrestrial gastropod species. The available results indicate that in the foraging of most of the terrestrial gastropod species odor cues contribute substantially to food finding and selection. The results also suggest, however, that what they will actually consume largely depends on where they live and the species of gastropod that they are. Due to the voluminous literature relevant to this object, this review is not intended to be exhaustive. Instead, I selected what I consider to be the most important or critical in studies regarding the role of the olfaction in feeding of terrestrial gastropods.

From likes to dislikes: conditioned taste aversion in the great pond snail (Lymnaea stagnalis)

The neural circuitry comprising the central pattern generator (CPG) that drives feeding behavior in the great pond snail (Lymnaea stagnalis (L., 1758)) has been worked out. Because the feeding behavior undergoes associative learning and long-term memory (LTM) formation, it provides an excellent opportunity to study the causal neuronal mechanisms of these two processes. In this review, we explore some of the possible causal neuronal mechanisms of associative learning of conditioned taste aversion (CTA) and its subsequent consolidation processes into LTM in L. stagnalis. In the CTA training procedure, a sucrose solution, which evokes a feeding response, is used as the conditioned stimulus (CS) and a potassium chloride solution, which causes a withdrawal response, is used as the unconditioned stimulus (US). The pairing of the CS–US alters both the feeding response of the snail and the function of a pair of higher order interneurons in the cerebral ganglia. Following the acquisition of CTA, the polysynaptic inhibitory synaptic input from the higher order interneurons onto the feeding CPG neurons is enhanced, resulting in suppression of the feeding response. These changes in synaptic efficacy are thought to constitute a “memory trace” for CTA in L. stagnalis.

Excitatory effects of GABA on procerebrum neurons in a slug

Classical neurotransmitters, such as glutamate and γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA), often have different actions on invertebrate neurons from those reported for vertebrate neurons. In the terrestrial mollusk Limax, glutamate was found to function as an inhibitory transmitter in the procerebrum (PC), but it has not yet been clarified how GABA acts in the PC. We thus examined what effects GABA exerts on PC neurons in the present study. For this purpose, we first applied GABA to isolated PC preparations and recorded postsynaptic currents and potentials in PC neurons. The GABA application reduced the amplitude of inhibitory postsynaptic currents and depolarization-induced outward currents recorded in nonbursting neurons and increased the number of spontaneous spikes of nonbursting neurons. However, direct GABA-induced currents were not observed in either bursting or nonbursting neurons. These results suggest a potential direct effect of GABA on outward currents resulting in enhanced excitability of PC neurons. Next, we measured the change in [Ca2+]i in cultured PC neurons by application of GABA. The GABA application increased spontaneous Ca2+ events in cultured neurons. These Ca2+ events were ascribable to the influx of extracellular Ca2+. We then confirmed the presence of GABA and GABA receptors in the PC. The GABA-like immunoreactivity was observed in the neuropil layers of the PC, and the mRNAs for both GABAA and GABAB receptors were expressed in the PC. In particular, GABAB receptor mRNA, rather than GABAA, was found to be more abundantly expressed in the PC. These results suggest that GABA functions as an excitatory modulator for PC neurons via mainly GABAB receptors.