1
|
Norekian TP, Moroz LL. The distribution and evolutionary dynamics of dopaminergic neurons in molluscs. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.06.26.600886. [PMID: 38979169 PMCID: PMC11230423 DOI: 10.1101/2024.06.26.600886] [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
Dopamine is one of the most versatile neurotransmitters in invertebrates. It's distribution and plethora of functions is likely coupled to feeding ecology, especially in Euthyneura (the largest clade of molluscs), which presents the broadest spectrum of environmental adaptations. Still, the analyses of dopamine-mediated signaling were dominated by studies of grazers. Here, we characterize the distribution of dopaminergic neurons in representatives of two distinct ecological groups: the sea angel - obligate predatory pelagic mollusc Clione limacina (Pteropoda, Gymnosomata) and its prey - the sea devil Limacina helicina (Pteropoda, Thecosomata) as well as the plankton eater Melibe leonina (Nudipleura, Nudibranchia). By using tyrosine hydroxylase-immunoreactivity (TH-ir) as a reporter, we showed that the dopaminergic system is moderately conservative among euthyneurans. Across all studied species, small numbers of dopaminergic neurons in the central ganglia contrast to significant diversification of TH-ir neurons in the peripheral nervous system, primarily representing sensory-like cells, which predominantly concentrated in the chemotactic areas and projecting afferent axons to the central nervous system. Combined with α-tubulin immunoreactivity, this study illuminates the unprecedented complexity of peripheral neural systems in gastropod molluscs, with lineage-specific diversification of sensory and modulatory functions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Leonid L. Moroz
- Whitney Laboratory, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, USA
- Departments of Neuroscience and McKnight Brain Institute, College of Medicine, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Brown JW, Berg OH, Boutko A, Stoerck C, Boersma MA, Frost WN. Division of labor for defensive retaliation and preemption by the peripheral and central nervous systems in the nudibranch Berghia. Curr Biol 2024; 34:2175-2185.e4. [PMID: 38718797 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.04.038] [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: 07/26/2023] [Revised: 01/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/15/2024] [Indexed: 05/23/2024]
Abstract
Relatively little is known about how peripheral nervous systems (PNSs) contribute to the patterning of behavior in which their role transcends the simple execution of central motor commands or mediation of reflexes. We sought to draw inferences to this end in the aeolid nudibranch Berghia stephanieae, which generates a rapid, dramatic defense behavior, "bristling." This behavior involves the coordinated movement of cerata, dozens of venomous appendages emerging from the animal's mantle. Our investigations revealed that bristling constitutes a stereotyped but non-reflexive two-stage behavior: an initial adduction of proximate cerata to sting the offending stimulus (stage 1) followed by a coordinated radial extension of remaining cerata to create a pincushion-like defensive screen around the animal (stage 2). In decerebrated specimens, stage 1 bristling was preserved, while stage 2 bristling was replaced by slower, uncoordinated ceratal movements. We conclude from these observations that, first, the animal's PNS and central nervous system (CNS) mediate stages 1 and 2 of bristling, respectively; second, the behavior propagates through the body utilizing both peripheral- and central-origin nerve networks that support different signaling kinetics; and third, the former network inhibits the latter in the body region being stimulated. These findings extend our understanding of the PNS' computational capacity and provide insight into a neuroethological scheme in which the CNS and PNS both independently and interactively pattern different aspects of non-reflexive behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey W Brown
- Stanson Toshok Center for Brain Function and Repair, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA; School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA
| | - Ondine H Berg
- Neuroscience Program, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL 60045, USA
| | - Anastasiya Boutko
- The Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA
| | - Cody Stoerck
- Department of Psychology, California State University at Fullerton, Fullerton, CA 92831, USA
| | | | - William N Frost
- Stanson Toshok Center for Brain Function and Repair, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA; School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA; The Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Norekian T, Liu Y, Gribkova ED, Cui J, Gillette R. A peripheral subepithelial network for chemotactile processing in the predatory sea slug Pleurobranchaea californica. PLoS One 2024; 19:e0296872. [PMID: 38329975 PMCID: PMC10852322 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0296872] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2024] Open
Abstract
Many soft-bodied animals have extensive peripheral nervous systems (PNS) with significant sensory roles. One such, the sea slug Pleurobranchaea californica, uses PNS computations in its chemotactile oral veil (OV) in prey tracking, averaging olfactory stimuli across the OV to target likely source direction, or "stimulus place". This suggests a peripheral subepithelial network (SeN) interconnecting sensory sites to compute the directional average. We pursued anatomy and connectivity of previously described ciliated putative sensory cells on OV papillae. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) confirmed paddle-shaped cilia in clusters. Anti-tubulin and phalloidin staining showed connections to branching nervelets and muscle fibers for contraction and expansion of papillae. Ciliary cell processes could not be traced into nerves, consistent with sensory transmission to CNS via secondary afferents. Anti-tyrosine hydroxylase-stained ciliated cells in clusters and revealed an at least partially dopaminergic subepithelial network interconnecting clusters near and distant, connections consistent with PNS averaging of multiple stimulated loci. Other, unidentified, SeN neurotransmitters are likely. Confirming chemotactile functions, perfusible suction electrodes recorded ciliary spiking excited by both mechanical and appetitive chemical stimuli. Stimuli induced sensory nerve spiking like that encoding stimulus place. Sensory nerve spikes and cilia cluster spikes were not identifiable as generated by the same neurons. Ciliary clusters likely drive the sensory nerve spikes via SeN, mediating appetitive and stimulus place codes to CNS. These observations may facilitate future analyses of the PNS in odor discrimination and memory, and also suggest such SeNs as potential evolutionary precursors of CNS place-coding circuitry in the segmented, skeletonized protostomes and deuterostomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tigran Norekian
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Biosciences, University of Florida, St. Augustine, Florida, United States of America
- Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Harbor, Washington, United States of America
| | - Yichen Liu
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Ekaterina D. Gribkova
- Coordinated Science Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Jilai Cui
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Rhanor Gillette
- Coordinated Science Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Gribkova ED, Lee CA, Brown JW, Cui J, Liu Y, Norekian T, Gillette R. A common modular design of nervous systems originating in soft-bodied invertebrates. Front Physiol 2023; 14:1263453. [PMID: 37854468 PMCID: PMC10579582 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1263453] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Nervous systems of vertebrates and invertebrates show a common modular theme in the flow of information for cost-benefit decisions. Sensory inputs are incentivized by integrating stimulus qualities with motivation and memory to affect appetitive state, a system of homeostatic drives, and labelled for directionality. Appetitive state determines action responses from a repertory of possibles and transmits the decision to a premotor system that frames the selected action in motor arousal and appropriate postural and locomotion commands. These commands are then sent to the primary motor pattern generators controlling the motorneurons, with feedback at each stage. In the vertebrates, these stages are mediated by forebrain pallial derivatives for incentive and directionality (olfactory bulb, cerebral cortex, pallial amygdala, etc.) interacting with hypothalamus (homeostasis, motivation, and reward) for action selection in the forebrain basal ganglia, the mid/hindbrain reticular formation as a premotor translator for posture, locomotion, and arousal state, and the spinal cord and cranial nuclei as primary motor pattern generators. Gastropods, like the predatory sea slug Pleurobranchaea californica, show a similar organization but with differences that suggest how complex brains evolved from an ancestral soft-bodied bilaterian along with segmentation, jointed skeletons, and complex exteroceptors. Their premotor feeding network combines functions of hypothalamus and basal ganglia for homeostasis, motivation, presumed reward, and action selection for stimulus approach or avoidance. In Pleurobranchaea, the premotor analogy to the vertebrate reticular formation is the bilateral "A-cluster" of cerebral ganglion neurons that controls posture, locomotion, and serotonergic motor arousal. The A-cluster transmits motor commands to the pedal ganglia analogs of the spinal cord, for primary patterned motor output. Apparent pallial precursors are not immediately evident in Pleurobranchaea's central nervous system, but a notable candidate is a subepithelial nerve net in the peripheral head region that integrates chemotactile stimuli for incentive and directionality. Evolutionary centralization of its computational functions may have led to the olfaction-derived pallial forebrain in the ancestor's vertebrate descendants and their analogs in arthropods and annelids.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ekaterina D. Gribkova
- Coordinated Science Laboratory, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
| | - Colin A. Lee
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
| | - Jeffrey W. Brown
- Stanson Toshok Center for Brain Function and Repair, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Jilai Cui
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
| | - Yichen Liu
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
| | - Tigran Norekian
- Whitney Laboratory for Marine Biosciences, University of Florida, St. Augustine, FL, United States
| | - Rhanor Gillette
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
- Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL, United States
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Brown JW, Berg OH, Boutko A, Stoerck C, Boersma MA, Frost WN. Neural division of labor: the gastropod Berghia defends against attack using its PNS to retaliate and its CNS to erect a defensive screen. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.29.551068. [PMID: 37577477 PMCID: PMC10418079 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.29.551068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
Relatively little is known about how the peripheral nervous system (PNS) contributes to the patterning of behavior, in which its role transcends the simple execution of central motor commands or mediation of reflexes. We sought to draw inferences to this end in the aeolid nudibranch Berghia stephanieae, which generates a rapid, dramatic defense behavior, "bristling." This behavior involves the coordinated movement of cerata, dozens of venomous appendages emerging from the animal's mantle. Our investigations revealed that bristling constitutes a stereotyped but non-reflexive two-stage behavior: an initial adduction of proximate cerata to sting the offending stimulus (Stage 1), followed by a coordinated radial extension of remaining cerata to create a pincushion-like defensive screen around the animal (Stage 2). In decerebrated specimens, Stage 1 bristling was preserved, while Stage 2 bristling was replaced by slower, uncoordinated, and ultimately maladaptive ceratal movements. We conclude from these observations that 1) the PNS and central nervous system (CNS) mediate Stages 1 and 2 of bristling, respectively; 2) the behavior propagates through the body utilizing both peripheral- and central-origin nerve networks that support different signaling kinetics; and 3) the former network inhibits the latter in the body region being stimulated. These findings extend our understanding of the PNS's computational capacity and provide insight into a neuroethological scheme that may generalize across cephalized animals, in which the CNS and PNS both independently and interactively pattern different aspects of non-reflexive behavior.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey W. Brown
- Stanson Toshok Center for Brain Function and Repair, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
- School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
| | - Ondine H. Berg
- Neuroscience Program, Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL 60045
| | - Anastasiya Boutko
- The Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
| | - Cody Stoerck
- Department of Psychology, California State University at Fullerton, Fullerton, CA 92831
| | | | - William N. Frost
- Stanson Toshok Center for Brain Function and Repair, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
- School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
- The Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL 60064
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Lebreton M, Sire S, Carayon JL, Malgouyres JM, Vignet C, Géret F, Bonnafé E. Low concentrations of oxazepam induce feeding and molecular changes in Radix balthica juveniles. AQUATIC TOXICOLOGY (AMSTERDAM, NETHERLANDS) 2021; 230:105694. [PMID: 33316747 DOI: 10.1016/j.aquatox.2020.105694] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2020] [Revised: 11/12/2020] [Accepted: 11/15/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Psychotropics, especially benzodiazepines, are commonly prescribed worldwide. Poorly eliminated at wastewater treatment plants, they belong to a group of emerging contaminants. Due to their interaction with the GABAA receptor, they may affect the function of the nervous system of non-target organisms, such as aquatic organisms. The toxicity of oxazepam, a very frequently detected benzodiazepine in continental freshwater, has been largely studied in aquatic vertebrates over the last decade. However, its effects on freshwater non-vertebrates have received much less attention. We aimed to evaluate the long-term effects of oxazepam on the juvenile stage of a freshwater gastropod widespread in Europe, Radix balthica. Juveniles were exposed for a month to environmentally-relevant concentrations of oxazepam found in rivers (0.8 μg/L) and effluents (10 μg/L). Three main physiological functions were studied: feeding, growth, and locomotion. Additionally, gene expression analysis was performed to provide insights into toxicity mechanisms. There was a strong short-term activation of the feeding rate at low concentration, whereas the high dose resulted in long-term inhibition of food intake. A significant decrease in mortality rate was observed in juveniles exposed to the lowest dose. Shell growth and locomotor activity did not appear to be affected by oxazepam. Transcriptomic analysis revealed global over-expression of genes involved in the nervous regulation of the feeding, digestive, and locomotion systems after oxazepam exposure. The molecular analysis also revealed a possible interference of animal manipulation with the molecular effects induced by oxazepam exposure. Overall, these results improve our understanding of the effects of the psychoactive drug oxazepam on an aquatic mollusc gastropod.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Morgane Lebreton
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Sacha Sire
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Jean-Luc Carayon
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Jean-Michel Malgouyres
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Caroline Vignet
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Florence Géret
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| | - Elsa Bonnafé
- Biochimie et Toxicologie des Substances Bioactives, EA 7417, INU Champollion, Albi, France.
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Miller MW. Dopamine as a Multifunctional Neurotransmitter in Gastropod Molluscs: An Evolutionary Hypothesis. THE BIOLOGICAL BULLETIN 2020; 239:189-208. [PMID: 33347799 PMCID: PMC8016498 DOI: 10.1086/711293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
AbstractThe catecholamine 3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine, or dopamine, acts as a neurotransmitter across a broad phylogenetic spectrum. Functions attributed to dopamine in the mammalian brain include regulation of motor circuits, valuation of sensory stimuli, and mediation of reward or reinforcement signals. Considerable evidence also supports a neurotransmitter role for dopamine in gastropod molluscs, and there is growing appreciation for its potential common functions across phylogeny. This article reviews evidence for dopamine's transmitter role in the nervous systems of gastropods. The functional properties of identified dopaminergic neurons in well-characterized neural circuits suggest a hypothetical incremental sequence by which dopamine accumulated its diverse roles. The successive acquisition of dopamine functions is proposed in the context of gastropod feeding behavior: (1) sensation of potential nutrients, (2) activation of motor circuits, (3) selection of motor patterns from multifunctional circuits, (4) valuation of sensory stimuli with reference to internal state, (5) association of motor programs with their outcomes, and (6) coincidence detection between sensory stimuli and their consequences. At each stage of this sequence, it is proposed that existing functions of dopaminergic neurons favored their recruitment to fulfill additional information processing demands. Common functions of dopamine in other intensively studied groups, ranging from mammals and insects to nematodes, suggest an ancient origin for this progression.
Collapse
|
8
|
Horváth R, Battonyai I, Maász G, Schmidt J, Fekete ZN, Elekes K. Chemical-neuroanatomical organization of peripheral sensory-efferent systems in the pond snail (Lymnaea stagnalis). Brain Struct Funct 2020; 225:2563-2575. [PMID: 32951073 PMCID: PMC7544616 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-020-02145-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Accepted: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Perception and processing of chemical cues are crucial for aquatic gastropods, for proper elaboration of adaptive behavior. The pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis, is a model species of invertebrate neurobiology, in which peripheral sensory neurons with different morphology and transmitter content have partly been described, but we have little knowledge regarding their functional morphological organization, including their possible peripheral intercellular connections and networks. Therefore the aim of our study was to characterize the sensory system of the tentacles and the lip, as primary sensory regions, and the anterior foot of Lymnaea with special attention to the transmitter content of the sensory neurons, and their relationship to extrinsic elements of the central nervous system. Numerous bipolar sensory cells were demonstrated in the epithelial layer of the peripheral organs, displaying immunoreactivity to antibodies raised against tyrosine hydroxylase, histamine, glutamate and two molluscan type oligopeptides, FMRFamide and Mytilus inhibitory peptide. A subepithelial plexus was formed by extrinsic serotonin and FMRFamide immunoreactive fibers, whereas in deeper regions axon processess of different origin with various immunoreactivities formed networks, too. HPLC-MS assay confirmed the presence of the low molecular weight signal molecules in the three examined areas. Following double-labeling immunohistochemistry, close arrangements were observed, formed by sensory neurons and extrinsic serotonergic (and FMRFamidergic) fibers at axo-dendritic, axo-somatic and axo-axonic levels. Our results suggest the involvement of a much wider repertoire of signal molecules in peripheral sensory processes of Lymnaea, which can locally be modified by central input, hence influencing directly the responses to environmental cues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Réka Horváth
- Department of Experimental Zoology, Centre for Ecological Research, Balaton Limnological Institute, 8237, Tihany, Hungary.
| | - Izabella Battonyai
- Department of Experimental Zoology, Centre for Ecological Research, Balaton Limnological Institute, 8237, Tihany, Hungary
| | - Gábor Maász
- Department of Experimental Zoology, Centre for Ecological Research, Balaton Limnological Institute, 8237, Tihany, Hungary
| | - János Schmidt
- Department of Analytical Biochemistry, Institute of Biochemistry and Medical Chemistry, University of Pécs, 7624, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Zsuzsanna N Fekete
- Department of Experimental Zoology, Centre for Ecological Research, Balaton Limnological Institute, 8237, Tihany, Hungary
| | - Károly Elekes
- Department of Experimental Zoology, Centre for Ecological Research, Balaton Limnological Institute, 8237, Tihany, Hungary
| |
Collapse
|