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Shaykevich DA, Pareja-Mejía D, Golde C, Pašukonis A, O’Connell LA. Neural and sensory basis of homing behavior in the invasive cane toad, Rhinella marina. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.06.25.600658. [PMID: 38979178 PMCID: PMC11230440 DOI: 10.1101/2024.06.25.600658] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/10/2024]
Abstract
The behavioral, sensory, and neural bases of vertebrate navigation are primarily described in mammals and birds. However, we know much less about navigational abilities and mechanisms of vertebrates that move on smaller scales, such as amphibians. To address this knowledge gap, we conducted an extensive field study on navigation in the cane toad, Rhinella marina. First, we performed a translocation experiment to describe how invasive toads in Hawai'i navigate home following displacements of up to one kilometer. Next, we tested the effect of olfactory and magnetosensory manipulations on homing, as these senses are most commonly associated with amphibian navigation. We found that neither ablation alone prevents homing, suggesting that toad navigation is multimodal. Finally, we tested the hypothesis that the medial pallium, the amphibian homolog to the hippocampus, is involved in homing. By comparing neural activity across homing and non-homing toads, we found evidence supporting the involvement of the medial pallium, lateral pallium, and septum in navigation, suggesting a conservation of neural structures supporting navigation across vertebrates. Our study lays the foundation to understand the behavioral, sensory, and neural bases of navigation in amphibians and to further characterize the evolution of behavior and neural structures in vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniela Pareja-Mejía
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Graduate Program in Zoology, Universidade Estadual de Santa Cruz, Bahía, Brazil
| | - Chloe Golde
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | | | - Lauren A. O’Connell
- Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
- Wu Tsai Institute for Neuroscience, Stanford University, Stanford CA, USA
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Volotsky S, Donchin O, Segev R. The archerfish uses motor adaptation in shooting to correct for changing physical conditions. eLife 2024; 12:RP92909. [PMID: 38829209 PMCID: PMC11147504 DOI: 10.7554/elife.92909] [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] [Indexed: 06/05/2024] Open
Abstract
The archerfish is unique in its ability to hunt by shooting a jet of water from its mouth that hits insects situated above the water's surface. To aim accurately, the fish needs to overcome physical factors including changes in light refraction at the air-water interface. Nevertheless, archerfish can still hit the target with a high success rate under changing conditions. One possible explanation for this extraordinary ability is that it is learned by trial and error through a motor adaptation process. We tested this possibility by characterizing the ability of the archerfish to adapt to perturbations in the environment to make appropriate adjustments to its shots. We introduced a perturbing airflow above the water tank of the archerfish trained to shoot at a target. For each trial shot, we measured the error, i.e., the distance between the center of the target and the center of the water jet produced by the fish. Immediately after the airflow perturbation, there was an increase in shot error. Then, over the course of several trials, the error was reduced and eventually plateaued. After the removal of the perturbation, there was an aftereffect, where the error was in the opposite direction but washed out after several trials. These results indicate that archerfish can adapt to the airflow perturbation. Testing the fish with two opposite airflow directions indicated that adaptation took place within an egocentric frame of reference. These results thus suggest that the archerfish is capable of motor adaptation, as indicated by data showing that the fish produced motor commands that anticipated the perturbation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Svetlana Volotsky
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
- School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
| | - Opher Donchin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
- School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
| | - Ronen Segev
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
- School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the NegevBe'er ShevaIsrael
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3
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Sibeaux A, Newport C, Green JP, Karlsson C, Engelmann J, Burt de Perera T. Taking a shortcut: what mechanisms do fish use? Commun Biol 2024; 7:578. [PMID: 38755224 PMCID: PMC11099040 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06179-5] [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: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Path integration is a powerful navigational mechanism whereby individuals continuously update their distance and angular vector of movement to calculate their position in relation to their departure location, allowing them to return along the most direct route even across unfamiliar terrain. While path integration has been investigated in several terrestrial animals, it has never been demonstrated in aquatic vertebrates, where movement occurs through volumetric space and sensory cues available for navigation are likely to differ substantially from those in terrestrial environments. By performing displacement experiments with Lamprologus ocellatus, we show evidence consistent with fish using path integration to navigate alongside other mechanisms (allothetic place cues and route recapitulation). These results indicate that the use of path integration is likely to be deeply rooted within the vertebrate phylogeny irrespective of the environment, and suggests that fish may possess a spatial encoding system that parallels that of mammals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adelaide Sibeaux
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK.
| | - Cait Newport
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
| | - Jonathan P Green
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
| | - Cecilia Karlsson
- Wolfson College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB3 9BB, UK
| | - Jacob Engelmann
- Faculty of Biology, Bielefeld University, Universitätstrasse 25, Bielefeld, 33615, Germany
| | - Theresa Burt de Perera
- Department of Biology, University of Oxford, Zoology Research and Administration Building, 11a Mansfield Road, Oxford, OX1 3SZ, UK
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Jeffery KJ. The mosaic structure of the mammalian cognitive map. Learn Behav 2024; 52:19-34. [PMID: 38231426 PMCID: PMC10923978 DOI: 10.3758/s13420-023-00618-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
The cognitive map, proposed by Tolman in the 1940s, is a hypothetical internal representation of space constructed by the brain to enable an animal to undertake flexible spatial behaviors such as navigation. The subsequent discovery of place cells in the hippocampus of rats suggested that such a map-like representation does exist, and also provided a tool with which to explore its properties. Single-neuron studies in rodents conducted in small singular spaces have suggested that the map is founded on a metric framework, preserving distances and directions in an abstract representational format. An open question is whether this metric structure pertains over extended, often complexly structured real-world space. The data reviewed here suggest that this is not the case. The emerging picture is that instead of being a single, unified construct, the map is a mosaic of fragments that are heterogeneous, variably metric, multiply scaled, and sometimes laid on top of each other. Important organizing factors within and between fragments include boundaries, context, compass direction, and gravity. The map functions not to provide a comprehensive and precise rendering of the environment but rather to support adaptive behavior, tailored to the species and situation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kate J Jeffery
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK.
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Beetz MJ. A perspective on neuroethology: what the past teaches us about the future of neuroethology. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2024; 210:325-346. [PMID: 38411712 PMCID: PMC10995053 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-024-01695-5] [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: 12/13/2023] [Revised: 02/12/2024] [Accepted: 02/13/2024] [Indexed: 02/28/2024]
Abstract
For 100 years, the Journal of Comparative Physiology-A has significantly supported research in the field of neuroethology. The celebration of the journal's centennial is a great time point to appreciate the recent progress in neuroethology and to discuss possible avenues of the field. Animal behavior is the main source of inspiration for neuroethologists. This is illustrated by the huge diversity of investigated behaviors and species. To explain behavior at a mechanistic level, neuroethologists combine neuroscientific approaches with sophisticated behavioral analysis. The rapid technological progress in neuroscience makes neuroethology a highly dynamic and exciting field of research. To summarize the recent scientific progress in neuroethology, I went through all abstracts of the last six International Congresses for Neuroethology (ICNs 2010-2022) and categorized them based on the sensory modalities, experimental model species, and research topics. This highlights the diversity of neuroethology and gives us a perspective on the field's scientific future. At the end, I highlight three research topics that may, among others, influence the future of neuroethology. I hope that sharing my roots may inspire other scientists to follow neuroethological approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Jerome Beetz
- Zoology II, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, 97074, Würzburg, Germany.
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Muessig L, Ribeiro Rodrigues F, Bjerknes TL, Towse BW, Barry C, Burgess N, Moser EI, Moser MB, Cacucci F, Wills TJ. Environment geometry alters subiculum boundary vector cell receptive fields in adulthood and early development. Nat Commun 2024; 15:982. [PMID: 38302455 PMCID: PMC10834499 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45098-1] [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: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 01/15/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Boundaries to movement form a specific class of landmark information used for navigation: Boundary Vector Cells (BVCs) are neurons which encode an animal's location as a vector displacement from boundaries. Here we characterise the prevalence and spatial tuning of subiculum BVCs in adult and developing male rats, and investigate the relationship between BVC spatial firing and boundary geometry. BVC directional tunings align with environment walls in squares, but are uniformly distributed in circles, demonstrating that environmental geometry alters BVC receptive fields. Inserted barriers uncover both excitatory and inhibitory components to BVC receptive fields, demonstrating that inhibitory inputs contribute to BVC field formation. During post-natal development, subiculum BVCs mature slowly, contrasting with the earlier maturation of boundary-responsive cells in upstream Entorhinal Cortex. However, Subiculum and Entorhinal BVC receptive fields are altered by boundary geometry as early as tested, suggesting this is an inherent feature of the hippocampal representation of space.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurenz Muessig
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | | | - Tale L Bjerknes
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, 7491, Norway
| | - Benjamin W Towse
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK
| | - Caswell Barry
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Neil Burgess
- Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, University College London, London, WC1N 3AZ, UK
- UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology, University College London, London, WC1N 3BG, UK
| | - Edvard I Moser
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, 7491, Norway
| | - May-Britt Moser
- Kavli Institute for Systems Neuroscience, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, 7491, Norway
| | - Francesca Cacucci
- Department of Neuroscience, Physiology and Pharmacology; University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK
| | - Thomas J Wills
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, WC1E 6BT, UK.
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Anneser L, Satou C, Hotz HR, Friedrich RW. Molecular organization of neuronal cell types and neuromodulatory systems in the zebrafish telencephalon. Curr Biol 2024; 34:298-312.e4. [PMID: 38157860 PMCID: PMC10808507 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.12.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Revised: 11/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/04/2023] [Indexed: 01/03/2024]
Abstract
The function of neuronal networks is determined not only by synaptic connectivity but also by neuromodulatory systems that broadcast information via distributed connections and volume transmission. To understand the molecular constraints that organize neuromodulatory signaling in the telencephalon of adult zebrafish, we used transcriptomics and additional approaches to delineate cell types, to determine their phylogenetic conservation, and to map the expression of marker genes at high granularity. The combinatorial expression of GPCRs and cell-type markers indicates that all neuronal cell types are subject to modulation by multiple monoaminergic systems and distinct combinations of neuropeptides. Individual cell types were associated with multiple (typically >30) neuromodulatory signaling networks but expressed only a few diagnostic GPCRs at high levels, suggesting that different neuromodulatory systems act in combination, albeit with unequal weights. These results provide a detailed map of cell types and brain areas in the zebrafish telencephalon, identify core components of neuromodulatory networks, highlight the cell-type specificity of neuropeptides and GPCRs, and begin to decipher the logic of combinatorial neuromodulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lukas Anneser
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Chie Satou
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Hans-Rudolf Hotz
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland
| | - Rainer W Friedrich
- Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research, Maulbeerstrasse 66, 4058 Basel, Switzerland; University of Basel, 4003 Basel, Switzerland.
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Lee TJ, Briggman KL. Visually guided and context-dependent spatial navigation in the translucent fish Danionella cerebrum. Curr Biol 2023; 33:5467-5477.e4. [PMID: 38070503 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.11.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2023] [Revised: 10/06/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/21/2023]
Abstract
Danionella cerebrum (DC) is a promising vertebrate animal model for systems neuroscience due to its small adult brain volume and inherent optical transparency, but the scope of their cognitive abilities remains an area of active research. In this work, we established a behavioral paradigm to study visual spatial navigation in DC and investigate their navigational capabilities and strategies. We initially observed that adult DC exhibit strong negative phototaxis in groups but less so as individuals. Using their dark preference as a motivator, we designed a spatial navigation task inspired by the Morris water maze. Through a series of environmental cue manipulations, we found that DC utilize visual cues to anticipate a reward location and found evidence for landmark-based navigational strategies wherein DC could use both proximal and distal visual cues. When subsets of proximal visual cues were occluded, DC were capable of using distant contextual visual information to solve the task, providing evidence for allocentric spatial navigation. Without proximal visual cues, DC tended to seek out a direct line of sight with at least one distal visual cue while maintaining a positional bias toward the reward location. In total, our behavioral results suggest that DC can be used to study the neural mechanisms underlying spatial navigation with cellular resolution imaging across an adult vertebrate brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Timothy J Lee
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior - caesar, Department of Computational Neuroethology, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, Bonn, 53175 North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
| | - Kevin L Briggman
- Max Planck Institute for Neurobiology of Behavior - caesar, Department of Computational Neuroethology, Ludwig-Erhard-Allee 2, Bonn, 53175 North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
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Tibi M, Biton Hayun S, Hochgerner H, Lin Z, Givon S, Ophir O, Shay T, Mueller T, Segev R, Zeisel A. A telencephalon cell type atlas for goldfish reveals diversity in the evolution of spatial structure and cell types. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadh7693. [PMID: 37910612 PMCID: PMC10619943 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adh7693] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/03/2023]
Abstract
Teleost fish form the largest group of vertebrates and show a tremendous variety of adaptive behaviors, making them critically important for the study of brain evolution and cognition. The neural basis mediating these behaviors remains elusive. We performed a systematic comparative survey of the goldfish telencephalon. We mapped cell types using single-cell RNA sequencing and spatial transcriptomics, resulting in de novo molecular neuroanatomy parcellation. Glial cells were highly conserved across 450 million years of evolution separating mouse and goldfish, while neurons showed diversity and modularity in gene expression. Specifically, somatostatin interneurons, famously interspersed in the mammalian isocortex for local inhibitory input, were curiously aggregated in a single goldfish telencephalon nucleus but molecularly conserved. Cerebral nuclei including the striatum, a hub for motivated behavior in amniotes, had molecularly conserved goldfish homologs. We suggest elements of a hippocampal formation across the goldfish pallium. Last, aiding study of the teleostan everted telencephalon, we describe substantial molecular similarities between goldfish and zebrafish neuronal taxonomies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Muhammad Tibi
- Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
| | - Stav Biton Hayun
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Hannah Hochgerner
- Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
| | - Zhige Lin
- Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
| | - Shachar Givon
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Osnat Ophir
- Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
| | - Tal Shay
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Thomas Mueller
- Department of Biology, Montclair State University, 1 Normal Avenue, Montclair, NJ 07043, USA
| | - Ronen Segev
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
- Department of Life Sciences, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
- The School of Brain Sciences and Cognition, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, 8410501 Beer Sheva, Israel
| | - Amit Zeisel
- Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003 Haifa, Israel
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Goldfish headgear reveals secrets of fish navigation. Nature 2023; 617:10. [PMID: 37130936 DOI: 10.1038/d41586-023-01427-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
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