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Friedrichsen K, Hsiang JC, Lin CI, McCoy L, Valkova K, Kerschensteiner D, Morgan JL. Subcellular pathways through VGluT3-expressing mouse amacrine cells provide locally tuned object-motion-selective signals in the retina. Nat Commun 2024; 15:2965. [PMID: 38580652 PMCID: PMC10997783 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-46996-0] [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: 06/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/15/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024] Open
Abstract
VGluT3-expressing mouse retinal amacrine cells (VG3s) respond to small-object motion and connect to multiple types of bipolar cells (inputs) and retinal ganglion cells (RGCs, outputs). Because these input and output connections are intermixed on the same dendrites, making sense of VG3 circuitry requires comparing the distribution of synapses across their arbors to the subcellular flow of signals. Here, we combine subcellular calcium imaging and electron microscopic connectomic reconstruction to analyze how VG3s integrate and transmit visual information. VG3s receive inputs from all nearby bipolar cell types but exhibit a strong preference for the fast type 3a bipolar cells. By comparing input distributions to VG3 dendrite responses, we show that VG3 dendrites have a short functional length constant that likely depends on inhibitory shunting. This model predicts that RGCs that extend dendrites into the middle layers of the inner plexiform encounter VG3 dendrites whose responses vary according to the local bipolar cell response type.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karl Friedrichsen
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, USA
| | - Jen-Chun Hsiang
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, USA
| | - Chin-I Lin
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, USA
| | - Liam McCoy
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Katia Valkova
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA
| | - Daniel Kerschensteiner
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
| | - Josh L Morgan
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO, USA.
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2
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Yuan M, Jin S, Tan G, Song S, Liu Y, Wang H, Shen Y. A Non-canonical Excitatory PV RGC-PV SC Visual Pathway for Mediating the Looming-evoked Innate Defensive Response. Neurosci Bull 2024; 40:310-324. [PMID: 37302108 PMCID: PMC10912393 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-023-01076-z] [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: 02/23/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Parvalbumin-positive retinal ganglion cells (PV+ RGCs) are an essential subset of RGCs found in various species. However, their role in transmitting visual information remains unclear. Here, we characterized PV+ RGCs in the retina and explored the functions of the PV+ RGC-mediated visual pathway. By applying multiple viral tracing strategies, we investigated the downstream of PV+ RGCs across the whole brain. Interestingly, we found that the PV+ RGCs provided direct monosynaptic input to PV+ excitatory neurons in the superficial layers of the superior colliculus (SC). Ablation or suppression of SC-projecting PV+ RGCs abolished or severely impaired the flight response to looming visual stimuli in mice without affecting visual acuity. Furthermore, using transcriptome expression profiling of individual cells and immunofluorescence colocalization for RGCs, we found that PV+ RGCs are predominant glutamatergic neurons. Thus, our findings indicate the critical role of PV+ RGCs in an innate defensive response and suggest a non-canonical subcortical visual pathway from excitatory PV+ RGCs to PV+ SC neurons that regulates looming visual stimuli. These results provide a potential target for intervening and treating diseases related to this circuit, such as schizophrenia and autism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Man Yuan
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, China
| | - Sen Jin
- The Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Viral Vectors for Biomedicine, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, National Medical Products Administration Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Viral Vector Technology in Cell and Gene Therapy Medicinal Products, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Quality Control Technology for Virus-Based Therapeutics, Guangdong Provincial Medical Products Administration, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems, Wuhan Center for Magnetic Resonance, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, CAS, Wuhan, 430071, China
| | - Gao Tan
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, China
| | - Siyuan Song
- Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, 77030, USA
| | - Yizong Liu
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, China
| | - Huadong Wang
- The Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Viral Vectors for Biomedicine, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science-Shenzhen Fundamental Research Institutions, National Medical Products Administration Key Laboratory for Research and Evaluation of Viral Vector Technology in Cell and Gene Therapy Medicinal Products, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Quality Control Technology for Virus-Based Therapeutics, Guangdong Provincial Medical Products Administration, Shenzhen, 518055, China
- State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems, Wuhan Center for Magnetic Resonance, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, CAS, Wuhan, 430071, China
| | - Yin Shen
- Eye Center, Renmin Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430060, China.
- Frontier Science Center of Immunology and Metabolism, Medical Research Institute, Wuhan University, Wuhan, 430071, China.
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3
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Swygart D, Yu WQ, Takeuchi S, Wong ROL, Schwartz GW. A presynaptic source drives differing levels of surround suppression in two mouse retinal ganglion cell types. Nat Commun 2024; 15:599. [PMID: 38238324 PMCID: PMC10796971 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-44851-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/22/2024] Open
Abstract
In early sensory systems, cell-type diversity generally increases from the periphery into the brain, resulting in a greater heterogeneity of responses to the same stimuli. Surround suppression is a canonical visual computation that begins within the retina and is found at varying levels across retinal ganglion cell types. Our results show that heterogeneity in the level of surround suppression occurs subcellularly at bipolar cell synapses. Using single-cell electrophysiology and serial block-face scanning electron microscopy, we show that two retinal ganglion cell types exhibit very different levels of surround suppression even though they receive input from the same bipolar cell types. This divergence of the bipolar cell signal occurs through synapse-specific regulation by amacrine cells at the scale of tens of microns. These findings indicate that each synapse of a single bipolar cell can carry a unique visual signal, expanding the number of possible functional channels at the earliest stages of visual processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Swygart
- Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Wan-Qing Yu
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Shunsuke Takeuchi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Rachel O L Wong
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Gregory W Schwartz
- Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Chicago, IL, USA.
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
- Department of Neurobiology, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, USA.
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4
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Park SJ, Lei W, Pisano J, Orpia A, Minehart J, Pottackal J, Hanke-Gogokhia C, Zapadka TE, Clarkson-Paredes C, Popratiloff A, Ross SE, Singer JH, Demb JB. Molecular identification of wide-field amacrine cells in mouse retina that encode stimulus orientation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.12.28.573580. [PMID: 38234775 PMCID: PMC10793454 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.28.573580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2024]
Abstract
Visual information processing is sculpted by a diverse group of inhibitory interneurons in the retina called amacrine cells. Yet, for most of the >60 amacrine cell types, molecular identities and specialized functional attributes remain elusive. Here, we developed an intersectional genetic strategy to target a group of wide-field amacrine cells (WACs) in mouse retina that co-express the transcription factor Bhlhe22 and the Kappa Opioid Receptor (KOR; B/K WACs). B/K WACs feature straight, unbranched dendrites spanning over 0.5 mm (∼15° visual angle) and produce non-spiking responses to either light increments or decrements. Two-photon dendritic population imaging reveals Ca 2+ signals tuned to the physical orientations of B/K WAC dendrites, signifying a robust structure-function alignment. B/K WACs establish divergent connections with multiple retinal neurons, including unexpected connections with non-orientation-tuned ganglion cells and bipolar cells. Our work sets the stage for future comprehensive investigations of the most enigmatic group of retinal neurons: WACs.
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Gaynes JA, Budoff SA, Grybko MJ, Poleg-Polsky A. Heterogeneous presynaptic receptive fields contribute to directional tuning in starburst amacrine cells. eLife 2023; 12:RP90456. [PMID: 38149980 PMCID: PMC10752589 DOI: 10.7554/elife.90456] [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: 12/28/2023] Open
Abstract
The processing of visual information by retinal starburst amacrine cells (SACs) involves transforming excitatory input from bipolar cells (BCs) into directional calcium output. While previous studies have suggested that an asymmetry in the kinetic properties of BCs along the soma-dendritic axes of the postsynaptic cell could enhance directional tuning at the level of individual branches, it remains unclear whether biologically relevant presynaptic kinetics contribute to direction selectivity (DS) when visual stimulation engages the entire dendritic tree. To address this question, we built multicompartmental models of the bipolar-SAC circuit and trained them to boost directional tuning. We report that despite significant dendritic crosstalk and dissimilar directional preferences along the dendrites that occur during whole-cell stimulation, the rules that guide BC kinetics leading to optimal DS are similar to the single-dendrite condition. To correlate model predictions to empirical findings, we utilized two-photon glutamate imaging to study the dynamics of bipolar release onto ON- and OFF-starburst dendrites in the murine retina. We reveal diverse presynaptic dynamics in response to motion in both BC populations; algorithms trained on the experimental data suggested that the differences in the temporal release kinetics are likely to correspond to heterogeneous receptive field properties among the different BC types, including the spatial extent of the center and surround components. In addition, we demonstrate that circuit architecture composed of presynaptic units with experimentally recorded dynamics could enhance directional drive but not to levels that replicate empirical findings, suggesting other DS mechanisms are required to explain SAC function. Our study provides new insights into the complex mechanisms underlying DS in retinal processing and highlights the potential contribution of presynaptic kinetics to the computation of visual information by SACs.
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Affiliation(s)
- John A Gaynes
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of MedicineAuroraUnited States
| | - Samuel A Budoff
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of MedicineAuroraUnited States
| | - Michael J Grybko
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of MedicineAuroraUnited States
| | - Alon Poleg-Polsky
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of MedicineAuroraUnited States
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6
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Liu Z, Xue J, Liu C, Tang J, Wu S, Lin J, Han J, Zhang Q, Wu C, Huang H, Zhao L, Zhuo Y, Li Y. Selective deletion of zinc transporter 3 in amacrine cells promotes retinal ganglion cell survival and optic nerve regeneration after injury. Neural Regen Res 2023; 18:2773-2780. [PMID: 37449644 DOI: 10.4103/1673-5374.373660] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Vision depends on accurate signal conduction from the retina to the brain through the optic nerve, an important part of the central nervous system that consists of bundles of axons originating from retinal ganglion cells. The mammalian optic nerve, an important part of the central nervous system, cannot regenerate once it is injured, leading to permanent vision loss. To date, there is no clinical treatment that can regenerate the optic nerve and restore vision. Our previous study found that the mobile zinc (Zn2+) level increased rapidly after optic nerve injury in the retina, specifically in the vesicles of the inner plexiform layer. Furthermore, chelating Zn2+ significantly promoted axonal regeneration with a long-term effect. In this study, we conditionally knocked out zinc transporter 3 (ZnT3) in amacrine cells or retinal ganglion cells to construct two transgenic mouse lines (VGATCreZnT3fl/fl and VGLUT2CreZnT3fl/fl, respectively). We obtained direct evidence that the rapidly increased mobile Zn2+ in response to injury was from amacrine cells. We also found that selective deletion of ZnT3 in amacrine cells promoted retinal ganglion cell survival and axonal regeneration after optic nerve crush injury, improved retinal ganglion cell function, and promoted vision recovery. Sequencing analysis of reginal ganglion cells revealed that inhibiting the release of presynaptic Zn2+ affected the transcription of key genes related to the survival of retinal ganglion cells in postsynaptic neurons, regulated the synaptic connection between amacrine cells and retinal ganglion cells, and affected the fate of retinal ganglion cells. These results suggest that amacrine cells release Zn2+ to trigger transcriptomic changes related to neuronal growth and survival in reginal ganglion cells, thereby influencing the synaptic plasticity of retinal networks. These results make the theory of zinc-dependent retinal ganglion cell death more accurate and complete and provide new insights into the complex interactions between retinal cell networks.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Jingfei Xue
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Canying Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Jiahui Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Siting Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Jicheng Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Jiaxu Han
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Qi Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Caiqing Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Haishun Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Ling Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Yehong Zhuo
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
| | - Yiqing Li
- State Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology, Zhongshan Ophthalmic Center, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, China, Guangzhou
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7
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Jo A, Deniz S, Cherian S, Xu J, Futagi D, DeVries SH, Zhu Y. Modular interneuron circuits control motion sensitivity in the mouse retina. Nat Commun 2023; 14:7746. [PMID: 38008788 PMCID: PMC10679153 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43382-0] [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: 11/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Neural computations arise from highly precise connections between specific types of neurons. Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) with similar stratification patterns are positioned to receive similar inputs but often display different response properties. In this study, we used intersectional mouse genetics to achieve single-cell type labeling and identified an object motion sensitive (OMS) AC type, COMS-AC(counter-OMS AC). Optogenetic stimulation revealed that COMS-AC makes glycinergic synapses with the OMS-insensitive HD2p-RGC, while chemogenetic inactivation showed that COMS-AC provides inhibitory control to HD2p-RGC during local motion. This local inhibition, combined with the inhibitory drive from TH2-AC during global motion, explains the OMS-insensitive feature of HD2p-RGC. In contrast, COMS-AC fails to make synapses with W3(UHD)-RGC, allowing it to exhibit OMS under the control of VGlut3-AC and TH2-AC. These findings reveal modular interneuron circuits that endow structurally similar RGC types with different responses and present a mechanism for redundancy-reduction in the retina to expand coding capacity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Jo
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Sercan Deniz
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Suraj Cherian
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Jian Xu
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Daiki Futagi
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Steven H DeVries
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Yongling Zhu
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA.
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8
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Jo A, Deniz S, Xu J, Duvoisin RM, DeVries SH, Zhu Y. A sign-inverted receptive field of inhibitory interneurons provides a pathway for ON-OFF interactions in the retina. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5937. [PMID: 37741839 PMCID: PMC10517963 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41638-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023] Open
Abstract
A fundamental organizing plan of the retina is that visual information is divided into ON and OFF streams that are processed in separate layers. This functional dichotomy originates in the ON and OFF bipolar cells, which then make excitatory glutamatergic synapses onto amacrine and ganglion cells in the inner plexiform layer. We have identified an amacrine cell (AC), the sign-inverting (SI) AC, that challenges this fundamental plan. The glycinergic, ON-stratifying SI-AC has OFF light responses. In opposition to the classical wiring diagrams, it receives inhibitory inputs from glutamatergic ON bipolar cells at mGluR8 synapses, and excitatory inputs from an OFF wide-field AC at electrical synapses. This "inhibitory ON center - excitatory OFF surround" receptive-field of the SI-AC allows it to use monostratified dendrites to conduct crossover inhibition and push-pull activation to enhance light detection by ACs and RGCs in the dark and feature discrimination in the light.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew Jo
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Sercan Deniz
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Jian Xu
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA
| | - Robert M Duvoisin
- Department of Chemical Physiology and Biochemistry, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, 97239, USA
| | - Steven H DeVries
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA.
| | - Yongling Zhu
- Departments of Ophthalmology and Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, 60611, USA.
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9
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Mani A, Yang X, Zhao TA, Leyrer ML, Schreck D, Berson DM. A circuit suppressing retinal drive to the optokinetic system during fast image motion. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5142. [PMID: 37612305 PMCID: PMC10447436 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-40527-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Optokinetic nystagmus (OKN) assists stabilization of the retinal image during head rotation. OKN is driven by ON direction selective retinal ganglion cells (ON DSGCs), which encode both the direction and speed of global retinal slip. The synaptic circuits responsible for the direction selectivity of ON DSGCs are well understood, but those sculpting their slow-speed preference remain enigmatic. Here, we probe this mechanism in mouse retina through patch clamp recordings, functional imaging, genetic manipulation, and electron microscopic reconstructions. We confirm earlier evidence that feedforward glycinergic inhibition is the main suppressor of ON DSGC responses to fast motion, and reveal the source for this inhibition-the VGluT3 amacrine cell, a dual neurotransmitter, excitatory/inhibitory interneuron. Together, our results identify a role for VGluT3 cells in limiting the speed range of OKN. More broadly, they suggest VGluT3 cells shape the response of many retinal cell types to fast motion, suppressing it in some while enhancing it in others.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam Mani
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Xinzhu Yang
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Tiffany A Zhao
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Megan L Leyrer
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - Daniel Schreck
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA
| | - David M Berson
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
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10
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Wang X, Roberts PA, Yoshimatsu T, Lagnado L, Baden T. Amacrine cells differentially balance zebrafish color circuits in the central and peripheral retina. Cell Rep 2023; 42:112055. [PMID: 36757846 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2022] [Revised: 11/01/2022] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 02/10/2023] Open
Abstract
The vertebrate inner retina is driven by photoreceptors whose outputs are already pre-processed; in zebrafish, outer retinal circuits split "color" from "grayscale" information across four cone-photoreceptor types. It remains unclear how the inner retina processes incoming spectral information while also combining cone signals to shape grayscale functions. We address this question by imaging the light-driven responses of amacrine cells (ACs) and bipolar cells (BCs) in larval zebrafish in the presence and pharmacological absence of inner retinal inhibition. We find that ACs enhance opponency in some bipolar cells while at the same time suppressing pre-existing opponency in others, so that, depending on the retinal region, the net change in the number of color-opponent units is essentially zero. To achieve this "dynamic balance," ACs counteract intrinsic color opponency of BCs via the On channel. Consistent with these observations, Off-stratifying ACs are exclusively achromatic, while all color-opponent ACs stratify in the On sublamina.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinwei Wang
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Biology Road, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK.
| | - Paul A Roberts
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Biology Road, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Takeshi Yoshimatsu
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Biology Road, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK
| | - Leon Lagnado
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Biology Road, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK.
| | - Tom Baden
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Biology Road, Brighton BN1 9QG, UK; Institute of Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Elfriede-Aulhorn-Strasse 7, 72076 Tübingen, Germany.
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11
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Luongo FJ, Liu L, Ho CLA, Hesse JK, Wekselblatt JB, Lanfranchi FF, Huber D, Tsao DY. Mice and primates use distinct strategies for visual segmentation. eLife 2023; 12:74394. [PMID: 36790170 PMCID: PMC9981152 DOI: 10.7554/elife.74394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2021] [Accepted: 01/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The rodent visual system has attracted great interest in recent years due to its experimental tractability, but the fundamental mechanisms used by the mouse to represent the visual world remain unclear. In the primate, researchers have argued from both behavioral and neural evidence that a key step in visual representation is 'figure-ground segmentation', the delineation of figures as distinct from backgrounds. To determine if mice also show behavioral and neural signatures of figure-ground segmentation, we trained mice on a figure-ground segmentation task where figures were defined by gratings and naturalistic textures moving counterphase to the background. Unlike primates, mice were severely limited in their ability to segment figure from ground using the opponent motion cue, with segmentation behavior strongly dependent on the specific carrier pattern. Remarkably, when mice were forced to localize naturalistic patterns defined by opponent motion, they adopted a strategy of brute force memorization of texture patterns. In contrast, primates, including humans, macaques, and mouse lemurs, could readily segment figures independent of carrier pattern using the opponent motion cue. Consistent with mouse behavior, neural responses to the same stimuli recorded in mouse visual areas V1, RL, and LM also did not support texture-invariant segmentation of figures using opponent motion. Modeling revealed that the texture dependence of both the mouse's behavior and neural responses could be explained by a feedforward neural network lacking explicit segmentation capabilities. These findings reveal a fundamental limitation in the ability of mice to segment visual objects compared to primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francisco J Luongo
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
| | - Lu Liu
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
| | - Chun Lum Andy Ho
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
| | - Janis K Hesse
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
- Computation and Neural Systems, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
- University of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyUnited States
| | - Joseph B Wekselblatt
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
| | - Frank F Lanfranchi
- Division of Biology and Biological Engineering, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
- Computation and Neural Systems, California Institute of TechnologyPasadenaUnited States
- University of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyUnited States
| | - Daniel Huber
- Department of Basic Neurosciences, University of GenevaGenevaSwitzerland
| | - Doris Y Tsao
- University of California, BerkeleyBerkeleyUnited States
- Howard Hughes Medical InstituteBerkeleyUnited States
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12
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de Almeida C, Chabbah N, Eyraud C, Fasano C, Bernard V, Pietrancosta N, Fabre V, El Mestikawy S, Daumas S. Absence of VGLUT3 Expression Leads to Impaired Fear Memory in Mice. eNeuro 2023; 10:ENEURO.0304-22.2023. [PMID: 36720646 PMCID: PMC9953049 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0304-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 01/08/2023] [Accepted: 01/10/2023] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Fear is an emotional mechanism that helps to cope with potential hazards. However, when fear is generalized, it becomes maladaptive and represents a core symptom of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Converging lines of research show that dysfunction of glutamatergic neurotransmission is a cardinal feature of trauma and stress related disorders such as PTSD. However, the involvement of glutamatergic co-transmission in fear is less well understood. Glutamate is accumulated into synaptic vesicles by vesicular glutamate transporters (VGLUTs). The atypical subtype, VGLUT3, is responsible for the co-transmission of glutamate with acetylcholine, serotonin, or GABA. To understand the involvement of VGLUT3-dependent co-transmission in aversive memories, we used a Pavlovian fear conditioning paradigm in VGLUT3-/- mice. Our results revealed a higher contextual fear memory in these mice, despite a facilitation of extinction. In addition, the absence of VGLUT3 leads to fear generalization, probably because of a pattern separation deficit. Our study suggests that the VGLUT3 network plays a crucial role in regulating emotional memories. Hence, VGLUT3 is a key player in the processing of aversive memories and therefore a potential therapeutic target in stress-related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Camille de Almeida
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Nida Chabbah
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Camille Eyraud
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Caroline Fasano
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montréal QC H4H 1R3, Quebec, Canada
| | - Véronique Bernard
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Nicolas Pietrancosta
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Véronique Fabre
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
| | - Salah El Mestikawy
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
- Douglas Mental Health University Institute, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montréal QC H4H 1R3, Quebec, Canada
| | - Stephanie Daumas
- Sorbonne Université, Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Neuroscience Paris Seine - Institut de Biologie Paris Seine (NPS - IBPS), Paris 75005, France
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13
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Gaynes JA, Budoff SA, Grybko MJ, Hunt JB, Poleg-Polsky A. Classical center-surround receptive fields facilitate novel object detection in retinal bipolar cells. Nat Commun 2022; 13:5575. [PMID: 36163249 PMCID: PMC9512824 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32761-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Antagonistic interactions between center and surround receptive field (RF) components lie at the heart of the computations performed in the visual system. Circularly symmetric center-surround RFs are thought to enhance responses to spatial contrasts (i.e., edges), but how visual edges affect motion processing is unclear. Here, we addressed this question in retinal bipolar cells, the first visual neuron with classic center-surround interactions. We found that bipolar glutamate release emphasizes objects that emerge in the RF; their responses to continuous motion are smaller, slower, and cannot be predicted by signals elicited by stationary stimuli. In our hands, the alteration in signal dynamics induced by novel objects was more pronounced than edge enhancement and could be explained by priming of RF surround during continuous motion. These findings echo the salience of human visual perception and demonstrate an unappreciated capacity of the center-surround architecture to facilitate novel object detection and dynamic signal representation. Center-surround receptive fields are typically considered to mediate edge detection. Here, by studying retinal bipolar cells responding to flashed and moving stimuli, the authors reveal an additional function: enhanced representation of newly appearing visual items.
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Affiliation(s)
- John A Gaynes
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Samuel A Budoff
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Michael J Grybko
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Joshua B Hunt
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA
| | - Alon Poleg-Polsky
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, USA.
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14
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Strauss S, Korympidou MM, Ran Y, Franke K, Schubert T, Baden T, Berens P, Euler T, Vlasits AL. Center-surround interactions underlie bipolar cell motion sensitivity in the mouse retina. Nat Commun 2022; 13:5574. [PMID: 36163124 PMCID: PMC9513071 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-32762-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2021] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Motion sensing is a critical aspect of vision. We studied the representation of motion in mouse retinal bipolar cells and found that some bipolar cells are radially direction selective, preferring the origin of small object motion trajectories. Using a glutamate sensor, we directly observed bipolar cells synaptic output and found that there are radial direction selective and non-selective bipolar cell types, the majority being selective, and that radial direction selectivity relies on properties of the center-surround receptive field. We used these bipolar cell receptive fields along with connectomics to design biophysical models of downstream cells. The models and additional experiments demonstrated that bipolar cells pass radial direction selective excitation to starburst amacrine cells, which contributes to their directional tuning. As bipolar cells provide excitation to most amacrine and ganglion cells, their radial direction selectivity may contribute to motion processing throughout the visual system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Strauss
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Tübingen AI Center, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Maria M Korympidou
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Yanli Ran
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Katrin Franke
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Timm Schubert
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Tom Baden
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
| | - Philipp Berens
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
- Tübingen AI Center, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Thomas Euler
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
| | - Anna L Vlasits
- Institute for Ophthalmic Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
- Centre for Integrative Neuroscience, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany.
- Department of Neurobiology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
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15
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Rodriguez TC, Zhong L, Simpson H, Gleason E. Reduced Expression of TMEM16A Impairs Nitric Oxide-Dependent Cl− Transport in Retinal Amacrine Cells. Front Cell Neurosci 2022; 16:937060. [PMID: 35966201 PMCID: PMC9363626 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2022.937060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Postsynaptic cytosolic Cl− concentration determines whether GABAergic and glycinergic synapses are inhibitory or excitatory. We have shown that nitric oxide (NO) initiates the release of Cl− from acidic internal stores into the cytosol of retinal amacrine cells (ACs) thereby elevating cytosolic Cl−. In addition, we found that cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) expression and Ca2+ elevations are necessary for the transient effects of NO on cytosolic Cl− levels, but the mechanism remains to be elucidated. Here, we investigated the involvement of TMEM16A as a possible link between Ca2+ elevations and cytosolic Cl− release. TMEM16A is a Ca2+-activated Cl− channel that is functionally coupled with CFTR in epithelia. Both proteins are also expressed in neurons. Based on this and its Ca2+ dependence, we test the hypothesis that TMEM16A participates in the NO-dependent elevation in cytosolic Cl− in ACs. Chick retina ACs express TMEM16A as shown by Western blot analysis, single-cell PCR, and immunocytochemistry. Electrophysiology experiments demonstrate that TMEM16A functions in amacrine cells. Pharmacological inhibition of TMEM16A with T16inh-AO1 reduces the NO-dependent Cl− release as indicated by the diminished shift in the reversal potential of GABAA receptor-mediated currents. We confirmed the involvement of TMEM16A in the NO-dependent Cl− release using CRISPR/Cas9 knockdown of TMEM16A. Two different modalities targeting the gene for TMEM16A (ANO1) were tested in retinal amacrine cells: an all-in-one plasmid vector and crRNA/tracrRNA/Cas9 ribonucleoprotein. The all-in-one CRISPR/Cas9 modality did not change the expression of TMEM16A protein and produced no change in the response to NO. However, TMEM16A-specific crRNA/tracrRNA/Cas9 ribonucleoprotein effectively reduces both TMEM16A protein levels and the NO-dependent shift in the reversal potential of GABA-gated currents. These results show that TMEM16A plays a role in the NO-dependent Cl− release from retinal ACs.
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16
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Wienbar S, Schwartz GW. Differences in spike generation instead of synaptic inputs determine the feature selectivity of two retinal cell types. Neuron 2022; 110:2110-2123.e4. [PMID: 35508174 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2022.04.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2021] [Revised: 03/21/2022] [Accepted: 04/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) are the spiking projection neurons of the eye that encode different features of the visual environment. The circuits providing synaptic input to different RGC types to drive feature selectivity have been studied extensively, but there has been less research aimed at understanding the intrinsic properties and how they impact feature selectivity. We introduce an RGC type in the mouse, the Bursty Suppressed-by-Contrast (bSbC) RGC, and compared it to the OFF sustained alpha (OFFsA). Differences in their contrast response functions arose from differences not in synaptic inputs but in their intrinsic properties. Spike generation was the key intrinsic property behind this functional difference; the bSbC RGC undergoes depolarization block while the OFFsA RGC maintains a high spike rate. Our results demonstrate that differences in intrinsic properties allow these two RGC types to detect and relay distinct features of an identical visual stimulus to the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophia Wienbar
- Department of Ophthalmology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA
| | - Gregory William Schwartz
- Department of Ophthalmology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL 60611, USA; Department of Neurobiology, Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, USA.
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17
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Abstract
Retinal circuits transform the pixel representation of photoreceptors into the feature representations of ganglion cells, whose axons transmit these representations to the brain. Functional, morphological, and transcriptomic surveys have identified more than 40 retinal ganglion cell (RGC) types in mice. RGCs extract features of varying complexity; some simply signal local differences in brightness (i.e., luminance contrast), whereas others detect specific motion trajectories. To understand the retina, we need to know how retinal circuits give rise to the diverse RGC feature representations. A catalog of the RGC feature set, in turn, is fundamental to understanding visual processing in the brain. Anterograde tracing indicates that RGCs innervate more than 50 areas in the mouse brain. Current maps connecting RGC types to brain areas are rudimentary, as is our understanding of how retinal signals are transformed downstream to guide behavior. In this article, I review the feature selectivities of mouse RGCs, how they arise, and how they are utilized downstream. Not only is knowledge of the behavioral purpose of RGC signals critical for understanding the retinal contributions to vision; it can also guide us to the most relevant areas of visual feature space. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Vision Science, Volume 8 is September 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Kerschensteiner
- John F. Hardesty, MD, Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences; Department of Neuroscience; Department of Biomedical Engineering; and Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, Missouri, USA;
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18
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Summers MT, Feller MB. Distinct inhibitory pathways control velocity and directional tuning in the mouse retina. Curr Biol 2022; 32:2130-2143.e3. [PMID: 35395192 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.03.054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Revised: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The sensory periphery is responsible for detecting ethologically relevant features of the external world, using compact, predominantly feedforward circuits. Visual motion is a particularly prevalent sensory feature, the presence of which can be a signal to enact diverse behaviors ranging from gaze stabilization reflexes to predator avoidance or prey capture. To understand how the retina constructs the distinct neural representations required for these behaviors, we investigated two circuits responsible for encoding different aspects of image motion: ON and ON-OFF direction-selective ganglion cells (DSGCs). Using a combination of two-photon targeted whole-cell electrophysiology, pharmacology, and conditional knockout mice, we show that distinct inhibitory pathways independently control tuning for motion velocity and motion direction in these two cell types. We further employ dynamic clamp and numerical modeling techniques to show that asymmetric inhibition provides a velocity-invariant mechanism of directional tuning, despite the strong velocity dependence of classical models of direction selectivity. We therefore demonstrate that invariant representations of motion features by inhibitory interneurons act as computational building blocks to construct distinct, behaviorally relevant signals at the earliest stages of the visual system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathew T Summers
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Marla B Feller
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA; Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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19
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Rochon PL, Theriault C, Rangel Olguin AG, Krishnaswamy A. The cell adhesion molecule Sdk1 shapes assembly of a retinal circuit that detects localized edges. eLife 2021; 10:e70870. [PMID: 34545809 PMCID: PMC8514235 DOI: 10.7554/elife.70870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/11/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Nearly 50 different mouse retinal ganglion cell (RGC) types sample the visual scene for distinct features. RGC feature selectivity arises from their synapses with a specific subset of amacrine (AC) and bipolar cell (BC) types, but how RGC dendrites arborize and collect input from these specific subsets remains poorly understood. Here we examine the hypothesis that RGCs employ molecular recognition systems to meet this challenge. By combining calcium imaging and type-specific histological stains, we define a family of circuits that express the recognition molecule Sidekick-1 (Sdk1), which include a novel RGC type (S1-RGC) that responds to local edges. Genetic and physiological studies revealed that Sdk1 loss selectively disrupts S1-RGC visual responses, which result from a loss of excitatory and inhibitory inputs and selective dendritic deficits on this neuron. We conclude that Sdk1 shapes dendrite growth and wiring to help S1-RGCs become feature selective.
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20
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Li Z, Ungerer M, Faßbender J, Wenhart C, Holthoff HP, Muench G. Tissue block staining and domestic adhesive tape yield qualified integral sections of adult mouse orbits and eyeballs. PLoS One 2021; 16:e0255363. [PMID: 34347814 PMCID: PMC8336840 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0255363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The standard histological processing procedure, which produces excellent staining of sections for most tissues, fails to yield satisfactory results in adult mouse orbits or eyeballs. Here, we show that a protocol using tissue block staining and domestic adhesive tapes resulted in qualified integral serial cryo-sections of whole orbits or eyeballs, and the fine structures were well preserved. The histological processing protocol comprises paraformaldehyde fixation, ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid decalcification, tissue block staining with hematoxylin and eosin, embedding, adhesive tape aided sectioning, and water-soluble mounting. This protocol was proved to be the best in comparison with seven other related existing histological traditional or non-traditional processing methods, according to the staining slice quality. We observed a hundred percent success rate in sectioning, collection, and mounting with this method. The reproducibility tested on qualified section success rates and slice quality scores confirmed that the technique is reliable. The feasibility of the method to detect target molecules in orbits was verified by successful trial tests on block immunostaining and adhesive tape-aided sectioning. Application of this protocol in joints, brains, and so on,—the challenging integral sectioning tissues, also generated high-quality histological staining sections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhongmin Li
- Advancecor GmbH, Martinsried, Germany
- * E-mail:
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21
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Lee S, Chen M, Shi Y, Zhou ZJ. Selective glycinergic input from vGluT3 amacrine cells confers a suppressed-by-contrast trigger feature in a subtype of M1 ipRGCs in the mouse retina. J Physiol 2021; 599:5047-5060. [PMID: 34292589 DOI: 10.1113/jp281717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS M1 intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) are known to encode absolute light intensity (irradiance) for non-image-forming visual functions (subconscious vision), such as circadian photoentrainment and the pupillary light reflex. It remains unclear how M1 cells respond to relative light intensity (contrast) and patterned visual signals. The present study identified a special form of contrast sensitivity (suppressed-by-contrast) in M1 cells, suggesting a role of patterned visual signals in regulating non-image-forming vision and a potential role of M1 ipRGCs in encoding image-forming visual cues. The study also uncovered a synaptic mechanism and a retinal circuit mediated by vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (vGluT3) amacrine cells that underlie the suppressed-by-contrast response of M1 cells. M1 ipRGC subtypes (M1a and M1b) were revealed that are distinguishable based on synaptic connectivity with vGluT3 amacrine cells, receptive field properties, intrinsic photo sensitivity and membrane excitability, and morphological features, suggesting a division of visual tasks among discrete M1 subpopulations. ABSTRACT The M1 type ipRGC (intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cell) is known to encode ambient light signals for non-image-forming visual functions such as circadian photo-entrainment and the pupillary light reflex. Here, we report that a subpopulation of M1 cells (M1a) in the mouse retina possess the suppressed-by-contrast (sbc) trigger feature that is a receptive field property previously found only in ganglion cells mediating image-forming vision. Using optogenetics and the dual patch clamp technique, we found that vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (vGluT3) (vGluT3) amacrine cells make glycinergic, but not glutamatergic, synapses specifically onto M1a cells. The spatiotemporal and pharmacological properties of visually evoked responses of M1a cells closely matched the receptive field characteristics of vGluT3 cells, suggesting a major role of the vGluT3 amacrine cell input in shaping the sbc trigger feature of M1a cells. We found that the other subpopulation of M1 cells (M1b), which did not receive a direct vGluT3 cell input, lacked the sbc trigger feature, being distinctively different from M1a cells in intrinsic photo responses, membrane excitability, receptive-field characteristics and morphological features. Together, the results reveal a retinal circuit that uses the sbc trigger feature to regulate irradiance coding and potentially send image-forming cues to non-image-forming visual centres in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Seunghoon Lee
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Minggang Chen
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Yuelin Shi
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Z Jimmy Zhou
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Science, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.,Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA.,Department of Neuroscience, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
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22
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Grimes WN, Aytürk DG, Hoon M, Yoshimatsu T, Gamlin C, Carrera D, Nath A, Nadal-Nicolás FM, Ahlquist RM, Sabnis A, Berson DM, Diamond JS, Wong RO, Cepko C, Rieke F. A High-Density Narrow-Field Inhibitory Retinal Interneuron with Direct Coupling to Müller Glia. J Neurosci 2021; 41:6018-6037. [PMID: 34083252 PMCID: PMC8276741 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0199-20.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2020] [Revised: 05/16/2021] [Accepted: 05/17/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Amacrine cells are interneurons composing the most diverse cell class in the mammalian retina. They help encode visual features, such as edges or directed motion, by mediating excitatory and inhibitory interactions between input (i.e., bipolar) and output (i.e., ganglion) neurons in the inner plexiform layer (IPL). Like other brain regions, the retina also contains glial cells that contribute to neurotransmitter uptake, metabolic regulation, and neurovascular control. Here, we report that, in mouse retina (of either sex), an abundant, though previously unstudied inhibitory amacrine cell is coupled directly to Müller glia. Electron microscopic reconstructions of this amacrine type revealed chemical synapses with known retinal cell types and extensive associations with Müller glia, the processes of which often completely ensheathe the neurites of this amacrine cell. Microinjecting small tracer molecules into the somas of these amacrine cells led to selective labeling of nearby Müller glia, leading us to suggest the name "Müller glia-coupled amacrine cell," or MAC. Our data also indicate that MACs release glycine at conventional chemical synapses, and viral retrograde transsynaptic tracing from the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus showed selective connections between MACs and a subpopulation of retinal ganglion cell types. Visually evoked responses revealed a strong preference for light increments; these "ON" responses were primarily mediated by excitatory chemical synaptic input and direct electrical coupling with other cells. This initial characterization of the MAC provides the first evidence for neuron-glia coupling in the mammalian retina and identifies the MAC as a potential link between inhibitory processing and glial function.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Gap junctions between pairs of neurons or glial cells are commonly found throughout the nervous system and play multiple roles, including electrical coupling and metabolic exchange. In contrast, gap junctions between neurons and glia cells have rarely been reported and are poorly understood. Here we report the first evidence for neuron-glia coupling in the mammalian retina, specifically between an abundant (but previously unstudied) inhibitory interneuron and Müller glia. Moreover, viral tracing, optogenetics, and serial electron microscopy provide new information about the neuron's synaptic partners and physiological responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- William N Grimes
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
- National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Didem Göz Aytürk
- Harvard Medical School, Blavatnik Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
| | - Mrinalini Hoon
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Takeshi Yoshimatsu
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Clare Gamlin
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Daniel Carrera
- National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Amurta Nath
- National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Francisco M Nadal-Nicolás
- Retinal Neurophysiology Section, National Eye Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Richard M Ahlquist
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Adit Sabnis
- National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - David M Berson
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island 02912
| | - Jeffrey S Diamond
- National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland 20892
| | - Rachel O Wong
- Department of Biological Structure, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
| | - Connie Cepko
- Harvard Medical School, Blavatnik Institute, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
| | - Fred Rieke
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195
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23
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Ning K, Sendayen BE, Kowal TJ, Wang B, Jones BW, Hu Y, Sun Y. Primary Cilia in Amacrine Cells in Retinal Development. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2021; 62:15. [PMID: 34241625 PMCID: PMC8287049 DOI: 10.1167/iovs.62.9.15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose Primary cilia are conserved organelles found in polarized cells within the eye that regulate cell growth, migration, and differentiation. Although the role of cilia in photoreceptors is well-studied, the formation of cilia in other retinal cell types has received little attention. In this study, we examined the ciliary profile focused on the inner nuclear layer of retinas in mice and rhesus macaque primates. Methods Retinal sections or flatmounts from Arl13b-Cetn2 tg transgenic mice were immunostained for cell markers (Pax6, Sox9, Chx10, Calbindin, Calretinin, ChaT, GAD67, Prox1, TH, and vGluT3) and analyzed by confocal microscopy. Primate retinal sections were immunostained for ciliary and cell markers (Pax6 and Arl13b). Optical coherence tomography (OCT) and ERGs were used to assess visual function of Vift88 mice. Results During different stages of mouse postnatal eye development, we found that cilia are present in Pax6-positive amacrine cells, which were also observed in primate retinas. The cilia of subtypes of amacrine cells in mice were shown by immunostaining and electron microscopy. We also removed primary cilia from vGluT3 amacrine cells in mouse and found no significant vision defects. In addition, cilia were present in the outer limiting membrane, suggesting that a population of Müller glial cells forms cilia. Conclusions We report that several subpopulations of amacrine cells in inner nuclear layers of the retina form cilia during early retinal development in mice and primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ke Ning
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States
| | - Brent E Sendayen
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States.,Palo Alto Veterans Administration, Palo Alto, California, United States
| | - Tia J Kowal
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States
| | - Biao Wang
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States
| | - Bryan W Jones
- Moran Eye Center, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States
| | - Yang Hu
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States
| | - Yang Sun
- Department of Ophthalmology, Stanford University School of Medicine, Palo Alto, California, United States.,Palo Alto Veterans Administration, Palo Alto, California, United States
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24
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Ding J, Chen A, Chung J, Acaron Ledesma H, Wu M, Berson DM, Palmer SE, Wei W. Spatially displaced excitation contributes to the encoding of interrupted motion by a retinal direction-selective circuit. eLife 2021; 10:e68181. [PMID: 34096504 PMCID: PMC8211448 DOI: 10.7554/elife.68181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Accepted: 06/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Spatially distributed excitation and inhibition collectively shape a visual neuron's receptive field (RF) properties. In the direction-selective circuit of the mammalian retina, the role of strong null-direction inhibition of On-Off direction-selective ganglion cells (On-Off DSGCs) on their direction selectivity is well-studied. However, how excitatory inputs influence the On-Off DSGC's visual response is underexplored. Here, we report that On-Off DSGCs have a spatially displaced glutamatergic receptive field along their horizontal preferred-null motion axes. This displaced receptive field contributes to DSGC null-direction spiking during interrupted motion trajectories. Theoretical analyses indicate that population responses during interrupted motion may help populations of On-Off DSGCs signal the spatial location of moving objects in complex, naturalistic visual environments. Our study highlights that the direction-selective circuit exploits separate sets of mechanisms under different stimulus conditions, and these mechanisms may help encode multiple visual features.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Ding
- Committee on Neurobiology Graduate Program, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - Albert Chen
- Department of Organismal Biology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - Janet Chung
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - Hector Acaron Ledesma
- Graduate Program in Biophysical Sciences, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - Mofei Wu
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - David M Berson
- Department of Neuroscience and Carney Institute for Brain Science, Brown UniversityProvidenceUnited States
| | - Stephanie E Palmer
- Committee on Neurobiology Graduate Program, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
- Department of Organismal Biology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
- Grossman Institute for Neuroscience, Quantitative Biology and Human Behavior, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
| | - Wei Wei
- Committee on Neurobiology Graduate Program, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
- Grossman Institute for Neuroscience, Quantitative Biology and Human Behavior, The University of ChicagoChicagoUnited States
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25
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Nogueira J, Castelló ME, Lescano C, Caputi ÁA. Distinct neuron phenotypes may serve object feature sensing in the electrosensory lobe of Gymnotus omarorum. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:237807. [PMID: 33707195 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.242242] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Early sensory relay circuits in the vertebrate medulla often adopt a cerebellum-like organization specialized for comparing primary afferent inputs with central expectations. These circuits usually have a dual output, carried by center ON and center OFF neurons responding in opposite ways to the same stimulus at the center of their receptive fields. Here, we show in the electrosensory lateral line lobe of Gymnotiform weakly electric fish that basilar pyramidal neurons, representing 'ON' cells, and non-basilar pyramidal neurons, representing 'OFF' cells, have different intrinsic electrophysiological properties. We used classical anatomical techniques and electrophysiological in vitro recordings to compare these neurons. Basilar neurons are silent at rest, have a high threshold to intracellular stimulation, delayed responses to steady-state depolarization and low pass responsiveness to membrane voltage variations. They respond to low-intensity depolarizing stimuli with large, isolated spikes. As stimulus intensity increases, the spikes are followed by a depolarizing after-potential from which phase-locked spikes often arise. Non-basilar neurons show a pacemaker-like spiking activity, smoothly modulated in frequency by slow variations of stimulus intensity. Spike-frequency adaptation provides a memory of their recent firing, facilitating non-basilar response to stimulus transients. Considering anatomical and functional dimensions, we conclude that basilar and non-basilar pyramidal neurons are clear-cut, different anatomo-functional phenotypes. We propose that, in addition to their role in contrast processing, basilar pyramidal neurons encode sustained global stimuli such as those elicited by large or distant objects while non-basilar pyramidal neurons respond to transient stimuli due to movement of objects with a textured surface.
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Affiliation(s)
- Javier Nogueira
- Departamento Neurociencias Integrativas y Computacionales, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Av. Italia 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay.,Departamento de Histología y Embriología, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de la República, Av. Gral Flores 2515, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - María E Castelló
- Laboratorio Desarrollo y Evolución Neural, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Av. Italia 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Carolina Lescano
- Laboratorio Desarrollo y Evolución Neural, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Av. Italia 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay
| | - Ángel A Caputi
- Departamento Neurociencias Integrativas y Computacionales, Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas Clemente Estable, Av. Italia 3318, Montevideo, Uruguay
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26
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Sergeeva EG, Rosenberg PA, Benowitz LI. Non-Cell-Autonomous Regulation of Optic Nerve Regeneration by Amacrine Cells. Front Cell Neurosci 2021; 15:666798. [PMID: 33935656 PMCID: PMC8085350 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2021.666798] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2021] [Accepted: 03/19/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual information is conveyed from the eye to the brain through the axons of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) that course through the optic nerve and synapse onto neurons in multiple subcortical visual relay areas. RGCs cannot regenerate their axons once they are damaged, similar to most mature neurons in the central nervous system (CNS), and soon undergo cell death. These phenomena of neurodegeneration and regenerative failure are widely viewed as being determined by cell-intrinsic mechanisms within RGCs or to be influenced by the extracellular environment, including glial or inflammatory cells. However, a new concept is emerging that the death or survival of RGCs and their ability to regenerate axons are also influenced by the complex circuitry of the retina and that the activation of a multicellular signaling cascade involving changes in inhibitory interneurons - the amacrine cells (AC) - contributes to the fate of RGCs. Here, we review our current understanding of the role that interneurons play in cell survival and axon regeneration after optic nerve injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena G. Sergeeva
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Kirby Center for Neuroscience, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Paul A. Rosenberg
- Department of Neurology, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Kirby Center for Neuroscience, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Neurology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Larry I. Benowitz
- Kirby Center for Neuroscience, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Laboratories for Neuroscience Research in Neurosurgery, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Neurosurgery, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
- Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
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27
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OFF-transient alpha RGCs mediate looming triggered innate defensive response. Curr Biol 2021; 31:2263-2273.e3. [PMID: 33798432 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2021.03.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2020] [Revised: 02/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Animals respond to visual threats, such as a looming object, with innate defensive behaviors. Here, we report that a specific type of retinal ganglion cell (RGC), the OFF-transient alpha RGC, is critical for the detection of looming objects. We identified Kcnip2 as its molecular marker. The activity of the Kcnip2-expressing RGCs encodes the size of the looming object. Ablation or suppression of these RGCs abolished or severely impaired the escape and freezing behaviors of mice in response to a looming object, while activation of their somas in the retina, or their axon terminals in the superior colliculus, triggered immediate escape behavior. Our results link the activity of a single type of RGC to visually triggered innate defensive behaviors and underscore that ethologically significant visual information is encoded by a labeled line strategy as early as in the retina.
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28
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Keleş MF, Hardcastle BJ, Städele C, Xiao Q, Frye MA. Inhibitory Interactions and Columnar Inputs to an Object Motion Detector in Drosophila. Cell Rep 2021; 30:2115-2124.e5. [PMID: 32075756 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.01.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2019] [Revised: 12/06/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The direction-selective T4/T5 cells innervate optic-flow processing projection neurons in the lobula plate of the fly that mediate the visual control of locomotion. In the lobula, visual projection neurons coordinate complex behavioral responses to visual features, however, the input circuitry and computations that bestow their feature-detecting properties are less clear. Here, we study a highly specialized small object motion detector, LC11, and demonstrate that its responses are suppressed by local background motion. We show that LC11 expresses GABA-A receptors that serve to sculpt responses to small objects but are not responsible for the rejection of background motion. Instead, LC11 is innervated by columnar T2 and T3 neurons that are themselves highly sensitive to small static or moving objects, insensitive to wide-field motion and, unlike T4/T5, respond to both ON and OFF luminance steps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mehmet F Keleş
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, 610 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Ben J Hardcastle
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, 610 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Carola Städele
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, 610 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Qi Xiao
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, 610 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA; University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Biological Chemistry, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Mark A Frye
- University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, 610 Charles Young Drive East, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA.
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29
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Yedutenko M, Howlett MHC, Kamermans M. High Contrast Allows the Retina to Compute More Than Just Contrast. Front Cell Neurosci 2021; 14:595193. [PMID: 33519381 PMCID: PMC7843368 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2020.595193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2020] [Accepted: 12/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The goal of sensory processing is to represent the environment of an animal. All sensory systems share a similar constraint: they need to encode a wide range of stimulus magnitudes within their narrow neuronal response range. The most efficient way, exploited by even the simplest nervous systems, is to encode relative changes in stimulus magnitude rather than the absolute magnitudes. For instance, the retina encodes contrast, which are the variations of light intensity occurring in time and in space. From this perspective, it is easy to understand why the bright plumage of a moving bird gains a lot of attention, while an octopus remains motionless and mimics its surroundings for concealment. Stronger contrasts simply cause stronger visual signals. However, the gains in retinal performance associated with higher contrast are far more than what can be attributed to just a trivial linear increase in signal strength. Here we discuss how this improvement in performance is reflected throughout different parts of the neural circuitry, within its neural code and how high contrast activates many non-linear mechanisms to unlock several sophisticated retinal computations that are virtually impossible in low contrast conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew Yedutenko
- Retinal Signal Processing Lab, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Marcus H. C. Howlett
- Retinal Signal Processing Lab, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands
| | - Maarten Kamermans
- Retinal Signal Processing Lab, Netherlands Institute for Neuroscience, Amsterdam, Netherlands
- Department of Biomedical Physics and Biomedical Optics, Amsterdam University Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands
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30
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Interrelationships between Cellular Density, Mosaic Patterning, and Dendritic Coverage of VGluT3 Amacrine Cells. J Neurosci 2021; 41:103-117. [PMID: 33208470 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1027-20.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Revised: 11/02/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Amacrine cells of the retina are conspicuously variable in their morphologies, their population demographics, and their ensuing functions. Vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (VGluT3) amacrine cells are a recently characterized type of amacrine cell exhibiting local dendritic autonomy. The present analysis has examined three features of this VGluT3 population, including their density, local distribution, and dendritic spread, to discern the extent to which these are interrelated, using male and female mice. We first demonstrate that Bax-mediated cell death transforms the mosaic of VGluT3 cells from a random distribution into a regular mosaic. We subsequently examine the relationship between cell density and mosaic regularity across recombinant inbred strains of mice, finding that, although both traits vary across the strains, they exhibit minimal covariation. Other genetic determinants must therefore contribute independently to final cell number and to mosaic order. Using a conditional KO approach, we further demonstrate that Bax acts via the bipolar cell population, rather than cell-intrinsically, to control VGluT3 cell number. Finally, we consider the relationship between the dendritic arbors of single VGluT3 cells and the distribution of their homotypic neighbors. Dendritic field area was found to be independent of Voronoi domain area, while dendritic coverage of single cells was not conserved, simply increasing with the size of the dendritic field. Bax-KO retinas exhibited a threefold increase in dendritic coverage. Each cell, however, contributed less dendrites at each depth within the plexus, intermingling their processes with those of neighboring cells to approximate a constant volumetric density, yielding a uniformity in process coverage across the population.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Different types of retinal neuron spread their processes across the surface of the retina to achieve a degree of dendritic coverage that is characteristic of each type. Many of these types achieve a constant coverage by varying their dendritic field area inversely with the local density of like-type neighbors. Here we report a population of retinal amacrine cells that do not develop dendritic arbors in relation to the spatial positioning of such homotypic neighbors; rather, this cell type modulates the extent of its dendritic branching when faced with a variable number of overlapping dendritic fields to approximate a uniformity in dendritic density across the retina.
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31
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Kim T, Shen N, Hsiang JC, Johnson KP, Kerschensteiner D. Dendritic and parallel processing of visual threats in the retina control defensive responses. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2020; 6:6/47/eabc9920. [PMID: 33208370 PMCID: PMC7673819 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.abc9920] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2020] [Accepted: 10/01/2020] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
Approaching predators cast expanding shadows (i.e., looming) that elicit innate defensive responses in most animals. Where looming is first detected and how critical parameters of predatory approaches are extracted are unclear. In mice, we identify a retinal interneuron (the VG3 amacrine cell) that responds robustly to looming, but not to related forms of motion. Looming-sensitive calcium transients are restricted to a specific layer of the VG3 dendrite arbor, which provides glutamatergic input to two ganglion cells (W3 and OFFα). These projection neurons combine shared excitation with dissimilar inhibition to signal approach onset and speed, respectively. Removal of VG3 amacrine cells reduces the excitation of W3 and OFFα ganglion cells and diminishes defensive responses of mice to looming without affecting other visual behaviors. Thus, the dendrites of a retinal interneuron detect visual threats, divergent circuits downstream extract critical threat parameters, and these retinal computations initiate an innate survival behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Kim
- John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - N Shen
- John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - J-C Hsiang
- John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - K P Johnson
- John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - D Kerschensteiner
- John F. Hardesty, MD Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA.
- Department of Neurosciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
- Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
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32
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Städele C, Keleş MF, Mongeau JM, Frye MA. Non-canonical Receptive Field Properties and Neuromodulation of Feature-Detecting Neurons in Flies. Curr Biol 2020; 30:2508-2519.e6. [PMID: 32442460 PMCID: PMC7343589 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.04.069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2020] [Revised: 03/10/2020] [Accepted: 04/24/2020] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Several fundamental aspects of motion vision circuitry are prevalent across flies and mice. Both taxa segregate ON and OFF signals. For any given spatial pattern, motion detectors in both taxa are tuned to speed, selective for one of four cardinal directions, and modulated by catecholamine neurotransmitters. These similarities represent conserved, canonical properties of the functional circuits and computational algorithms for motion vision. Less is known about feature detectors, including how receptive field properties differ from the motion pathway or whether they are under neuromodulatory control to impart functional plasticity for the detection of salient objects from a moving background. Here, we investigated 19 types of putative feature selective lobula columnar (LC) neurons in the optic lobe of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster to characterize divergent properties of feature selection. We identified LC12 and LC15 as feature detectors. LC15 encodes moving bars, whereas LC12 is selective for the motion of discrete objects, mostly independent of size. Neither is selective for contrast polarity, speed, or direction, highlighting key differences in the underlying algorithms for feature detection and motion vision. We show that the onset of background motion suppresses object responses by LC12 and LC15. Surprisingly, the application of octopamine, which is released during flight, reverses the suppressive influence of background motion, rendering both LCs able to track moving objects superimposed against background motion. Our results provide a comparative framework for the function and modulation of feature detectors and new insights into the underlying neuronal mechanisms involved in visual feature detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carola Städele
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Mehmet F Keleş
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Jean-Michel Mongeau
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA
| | - Mark A Frye
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095-7239, USA.
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33
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Tanaka R, Clark DA. Object-Displacement-Sensitive Visual Neurons Drive Freezing in Drosophila. Curr Biol 2020; 30:2532-2550.e8. [PMID: 32442466 PMCID: PMC8716191 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.04.068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2020] [Revised: 04/22/2020] [Accepted: 04/24/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Visual systems are often equipped with neurons that detect small moving objects, which may represent prey, predators, or conspecifics. Although the processing properties of those neurons have been studied in diverse organisms, links between the proposed algorithms and animal behaviors or circuit mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we have investigated behavioral function, computational algorithm, and neurochemical mechanisms of an object-selective neuron, LC11, in Drosophila. With genetic silencing and optogenetic activation, we show that LC11 is necessary for a visual object-induced stopping behavior in walking flies, a form of short-term freezing, and its activity can promote stopping. We propose a new quantitative model for small object selectivity based on the physiology and anatomy of LC11 and its inputs. The model accurately reproduces LC11 responses by pooling fast-adapting, tightly size-tuned inputs. Direct visualization of neurotransmitter inputs to LC11 confirmed the model conjectures about upstream processing. Our results demonstrate how adaptation can enhance selectivity for behaviorally relevant, dynamic visual features.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryosuke Tanaka
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA
| | - Damon A Clark
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Department of Physics, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
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34
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Park SJH, Lieberman EE, Ke JB, Rho N, Ghorbani P, Rahmani P, Jun NY, Lee HL, Kim IJ, Briggman KL, Demb JB, Singer JH. Connectomic analysis reveals an interneuron with an integral role in the retinal circuit for night vision. eLife 2020; 9:e56077. [PMID: 32412412 PMCID: PMC7228767 DOI: 10.7554/elife.56077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Night vision in mammals depends fundamentally on rod photoreceptors and the well-studied rod bipolar (RB) cell pathway. The central neuron in this pathway, the AII amacrine cell (AC), exhibits a spatially tuned receptive field, composed of an excitatory center and an inhibitory surround, that propagates to ganglion cells, the retina's projection neurons. The circuitry underlying the surround of the AII, however, remains unresolved. Here, we combined structural, functional and optogenetic analyses of the mouse retina to discover that surround inhibition of the AII depends primarily on a single interneuron type, the NOS-1 AC: a multistratified, axon-bearing GABAergic cell, with dendrites in both ON and OFF synaptic layers, but with a pure ON (depolarizing) response to light. Our study demonstrates generally that novel neural circuits can be identified from targeted connectomic analyses and specifically that the NOS-1 AC mediates long-range inhibition during night vision and is a major element of the RB pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia JH Park
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Evan E Lieberman
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | - Jiang-Bin Ke
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | - Nao Rho
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | - Padideh Ghorbani
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
| | - Pouyan Rahmani
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Na Young Jun
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Hae-Lim Lee
- Department of Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - In-Jung Kim
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Kevin L Briggman
- Circuit Dynamics and Connectivity Unit, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of HealthBethesdaUnited States
| | - Jonathan B Demb
- Department of Ophthalmology & Visual Science, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
- Department of Cellular & Molecular Physiology, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
- Department of Neuroscience, Yale UniversityNew HavenUnited States
| | - Joshua H Singer
- Department of Biology, University of MarylandCollege ParkUnited States
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35
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A retinal circuit for the suppressed-by-contrast receptive field of a polyaxonal amacrine cell. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:9577-9583. [PMID: 32273387 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1913417117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Amacrine cells are a diverse population of interneurons in the retina that play a critical role in extracting complex features of the visual world and shaping the receptive fields of retinal output neurons (ganglion cells). While much of the computational power of amacrine cells is believed to arise from the immense mutual interactions among amacrine cells themselves, the intricate circuitry and functions of amacrine-amacrine interactions are poorly understood in general. Here we report a specific interamacrine pathway from a small-field, glutamate-glycine dual-transmitter amacrine cell (vGluT3) to a wide-field polyaxonal amacrine cell (PAS4/5). Distal tips of vGluT3 cell dendrites made selective glycinergic (but not glutamatergic) synapses onto PAS4/5 dendrites to provide a center-inhibitory, surround-disinhibitory drive that helps PAS4/5 cells build a suppressed-by-contrast (sbc) receptive field, which is a unique and fundamental trigger feature previously found only in a small population of ganglion cells. The finding of this trigger feature in a circuit upstream to ganglion cells suggests that the sbc form of visual computation occurs more widely in the retina than previously believed and shapes visual processing in multiple downstream circuits in multiple ways. We also identified two different subpopulations of PAS4/5 cells based on their differential connectivity with vGluT3 cells and their distinct receptive-field and luminance-encoding characteristics. Moreover, our results revealed a form of crosstalk between small-field and large-field amacrine cell circuits, which provides a mechanism for feature-specific local (<150 µm) control of global (>1 mm) retinal activity.
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36
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Grünert U, Martin PR. Cell types and cell circuits in human and non-human primate retina. Prog Retin Eye Res 2020; 78:100844. [PMID: 32032773 DOI: 10.1016/j.preteyeres.2020.100844] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/19/2019] [Revised: 01/28/2020] [Accepted: 01/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
This review summarizes our current knowledge of primate including human retina focusing on bipolar, amacrine and ganglion cells and their connectivity. We have two main motivations in writing. Firstly, recent progress in non-invasive imaging methods to study retinal diseases mean that better understanding of the primate retina is becoming an important goal both for basic and for clinical sciences. Secondly, genetically modified mice are increasingly used as animal models for human retinal diseases. Thus, it is important to understand to which extent the retinas of primates and rodents are comparable. We first compare cell populations in primate and rodent retinas, with emphasis on how the fovea (despite its small size) dominates the neural landscape of primate retina. We next summarise what is known, and what is not known, about the postreceptoral neurone populations in primate retina. The inventories of bipolar and ganglion cells in primates are now nearing completion, comprising ~12 types of bipolar cell and at least 17 types of ganglion cell. Primate ganglion cells show clear differences in dendritic field size across the retina, and their morphology differs clearly from that of mouse retinal ganglion cells. Compared to bipolar and ganglion cells, amacrine cells show even higher morphological diversity: they could comprise over 40 types. Many amacrine types appear conserved between primates and mice, but functions of only a few types are understood in any primate or non-primate retina. Amacrine cells appear as the final frontier for retinal research in monkeys and mice alike.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ulrike Grünert
- The University of Sydney, Save Sight Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia; Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function, Sydney Node, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia.
| | - Paul R Martin
- The University of Sydney, Save Sight Institute, Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia; Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Integrative Brain Function, Sydney Node, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
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37
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Synaptic inputs from identified bipolar and amacrine cells to a sparsely branched ganglion cell in rabbit retina. Vis Neurosci 2020; 36:E004. [PMID: 31199211 DOI: 10.1017/s0952523819000014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
There are more than 30 distinct types of mammalian retinal ganglion cells, each sensitive to different features of the visual environment. In rabbit retina, they can be grouped into four classes according to their morphology and stratification of their dendrites in the inner plexiform layer (IPL). The goal of this study was to describe the synaptic inputs to one type of Class IV ganglion cell, the third member of the sparsely branched Class IV cells (SB3). One cell of this type was partially reconstructed in a retinal connectome developed using automated transmission electron microscopy (ATEM). It had slender, relatively straight dendrites that ramify in the sublamina a of the IPL. The dendrites of the SB3 cell were always postsynaptic in the IPL, supporting its identity as a ganglion cell. It received 29% of its input from bipolar cells, a value in the middle of the range for rabbit retinal ganglion cells studied previously. The SB3 cell typically received only one synapse per bipolar cell from multiple types of presumed OFF bipolar cells; reciprocal synapses from amacrine cells at the dyad synapses were infrequent. In a few instances, the bipolar cells presynaptic to the SB3 ganglion cell also provided input to an amacrine cell presynaptic to the ganglion cell. There was apparently no crossover inhibition from narrow-field ON amacrine cells. Most of the amacrine cell inputs were from axons and dendrites of GABAergic amacrine cells, likely providing inhibitory input from outside the classical receptive field.
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38
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Yamagata M, Sanes JR. Expression and Roles of the Immunoglobulin Superfamily Recognition Molecule Sidekick1 in Mouse Retina. Front Mol Neurosci 2019; 11:485. [PMID: 30687002 PMCID: PMC6333872 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2018.00485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2018] [Accepted: 12/13/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Processes of >100 types of interneurons (bipolar and amacrine cells) and projection neurons (retinal ganglion cells, RGCs) form specific and stereotyped patterns of connections in the inner plexiform layer (IPL) of the mouse retina. Four closely related homophilic immunoglobulin superfamily recognition molecules (Sidekick [Sdk] 1, Sdk 2, Dscam, and DscamL1) have been shown to play roles in patterning neuronal arbors and connections in chick retina, and all but Sdk1 have been shown to play related roles in mice. Here, we compare patterns of Sdk1 and Sdk2 expression in mouse retina and use genetic methods to assess roles of Sdk1. In adult retina, 3 neuronal types express sdk1 but not sdk2 at detectable levels, 5 express sdk2 but not sdk1 and 3 express both. Patterns of gene expression and protein localization at or near synapses are established during the first postnatal week. Dendrites of amacrine cells and RGCs that express sdk1 but not sdk2 arborize in the same narrow stratum in the center of the IPL. In the absence of Sdk1, this laminar restriction is degraded. Overexpression of sdk1 in developing cells that normally express sdk2 reorients their dendrites to resemble those of endogenously Sdk1-positive cells, indicating that Sdk1 plays an instructive role in patterning the IPL. Sdk1 fails to affect arbors when introduced after they are mature, suggesting that it is required to form but not maintain laminar restrictions. The effect of ectopically expressed sdk1 requires the presence of endogenous Sdk1, suggesting that the effect requires homophilic interactions among Sdk1-positive neurites. Together with previous results on Sdk2, Dscam, DscamL1, as well as the related Contactins, our results support the idea that an elaborate immunoglobulin superfamily code plays a prominent role in establishing neural circuits in the retina by means of tightly regulated cell type-specific expression and homophilically restricted intercellular interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masahito Yamagata
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States
| | - Joshua R Sanes
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States
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39
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Lee ES, Lee JY, Kim GH, Jeon CJ. Identification of calretinin-expressing retinal ganglion cells projecting to the mouse superior colliculus. Cell Tissue Res 2018; 376:153-163. [PMID: 30506393 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-018-2964-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2018] [Accepted: 11/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In mice, retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), which consist of around 30 subtypes, exclusively transmit retinal information to the relevant brain systems through parallel visual pathways. The superior colliculus (SC) receives the vast majority of this information from several RGC subtypes. The objective of the current study is to identify the types of calretinin (CR)-expressing RGCs that project to the SC in mice. To label RGCs, we performed CR immunoreactivity in the mouse retina after injections of fluorescent dye, dextran into mouse SC. Subsequently, the neurons double-labeled for dextran and CR were iontophoretically injected with the lipophilic dye, DiI, to characterize the detailed morphological properties of these cells. The analysis of various morphological parameters, including dendritic arborization, dendritic field size and stratification, indicated that, of the ten different types of CR-expressing RGCs in the retina, the double-labeled cells consisted of at least eight types of RGCs that projected to the SC. These cells tended to have small-medium field sizes. However, except for dendritic field size, the cells did not exhibit consistent characteristics for the other morphometric parameters examined. The combination of a tracer and single-cell injections after immunohistochemistry for a particular molecule provided valuable data that confirmed the presence of distinct subtypes of RGCs within multiple-labeled RGCs that projected to specific brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eun-Shil Lee
- Department of Biology, School of Life Sciences, BK 21 Plus KNU Creative BioResearch Group, College of Natural Sciences, and Brain Science and Engineering Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, 41566, South Korea
| | - Jea-Young Lee
- Center of Excellence for Aging and Brain Repair, USF Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, 33612, USA
| | - Gil Hyun Kim
- Department of Biology, School of Life Sciences, BK 21 Plus KNU Creative BioResearch Group, College of Natural Sciences, and Brain Science and Engineering Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, 41566, South Korea
| | - Chang-Jin Jeon
- Department of Biology, School of Life Sciences, BK 21 Plus KNU Creative BioResearch Group, College of Natural Sciences, and Brain Science and Engineering Institute, Kyungpook National University, Daegu, 41566, South Korea.
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40
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Abstract
Visual motion on the retina activates a cohort of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). This population activity encodes multiple streams of information extracted by parallel retinal circuits. Motion processing in the retina is best studied in the direction-selective circuit. The main focus of this review is the neural basis of direction selectivity, which has been investigated in unprecedented detail using state-of-the-art functional, connectomic, and modeling methods. Mechanisms underlying the encoding of other motion features by broader RGC populations are also discussed. Recent discoveries at both single-cell and population levels highlight the dynamic and stimulus-dependent engagement of multiple mechanisms that collectively implement robust motion detection under diverse visual conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Wei
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA
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41
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Chen Q, Wei W. Stimulus-dependent engagement of neural mechanisms for reliable motion detection in the mouse retina. J Neurophysiol 2018; 120:1153-1161. [PMID: 29897862 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00716.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Direction selectivity is a fundamental computation in the visual system and is first computed by the direction-selective circuit in the mammalian retina. Although landmark discoveries on the neural basis of direction selectivity have been made in the rabbit, many technological advances designed for the mouse have emerged, making this organism a favored model for investigating the direction-selective circuit at the molecular, synaptic, and network levels. Studies using diverse motion stimuli in the mouse retina demonstrate that retinal direction selectivity is implemented by multilayered mechanisms. This review begins with a set of central mechanisms that are engaged under a wide range of visual conditions and then focuses on additional layers of mechanisms that are dynamically recruited under different visual stimulus conditions. Together, recent findings allude to an emerging theme: robust motion detection in the natural environment requires flexible neural mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Chen
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of Chicago , Chicago, Illinois.,Committee on Computational Neuroscience, The University of Chicago , Chicago, Illinois
| | - Wei Wei
- Department of Neurobiology, The University of Chicago , Chicago, Illinois.,Committee on Computational Neuroscience, The University of Chicago , Chicago, Illinois
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42
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Stabio ME, Sondereker KB, Haghgou SD, Day BL, Chidsey B, Sabbah S, Renna JM. A novel map of the mouse eye for orienting retinal topography in anatomical space. J Comp Neurol 2018; 526:1749-1759. [PMID: 29633277 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2017] [Revised: 03/01/2018] [Accepted: 03/19/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Functionally distinct retinal ganglion cells have density and size gradients across the mouse retina, and some degenerative eye diseases follow topographic-specific gradients of cell death. Hence, the anatomical orientation of the retina with respect to the orbit and head is important for understanding the functional anatomy of the retina in both health and disease. However, different research groups use different anatomical landmarks to determine retinal orientation (dorsal, ventral, temporal, nasal poles). Variations in the accuracy and reliability in marking these landmarks during dissection may lead to discrepancies in the identification and reporting of retinal topography. The goal of this study was to compare the accuracy and reliability of the canthus, rectus muscle, and choroid fissure landmarks in reporting retinal orientation. The retinal relieving cut angle made from each landmark during dissection was calculated based on its relationship to the opsin transition zone (OTZ), determined via a custom MATLAB script that aligns retinas from immunostained s-opsin. The choroid fissure and rectus muscle landmarks were the most accurate and reliable, while burn marks using the canthus as a reference were the least. These values were used to build an anatomical map that plots various ocular landmarks in relationship to one another, to the horizontal semicircular canals, to lambda-bregma, and to the earth's horizon. Surprisingly, during normal locomotion, the mouse's opsin gradient and the horizontal semicircular canals make equivalent 6° angles aligning the OTZ near the earth's horizon, a feature which may enhance the mouse's ability to visually navigate through its environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maureen E Stabio
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado
| | | | - Sean D Haghgou
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Brittany L Day
- Department of Biology, The University of Akron, Akron, Ohio
| | - Berrien Chidsey
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado
| | - Shai Sabbah
- Department of Neuroscience, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
| | - Jordan M Renna
- Department of Biology, The University of Akron, Akron, Ohio
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43
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Abstract
The long-held view that bipolar cells provide the exclusive excitatory drive to the mammalian inner retina has been challenged: new studies indicate that, instead, at least two cells that lack the dendrites characteristic for bipolar cells, and therefore resemble amacrine cells, excite inner retinal circuits using glutamate.
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44
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Kim T, Kerschensteiner D. Inhibitory Control of Feature Selectivity in an Object Motion Sensitive Circuit of the Retina. Cell Rep 2018; 19:1343-1350. [PMID: 28514655 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.04.060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2017] [Revised: 04/15/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Object motion sensitive (OMS) W3-retinal ganglion cells (W3-RGCs) in mice respond to local movements in a visual scene but remain silent during self-generated global image motion. The excitatory inputs that drive responses of W3-RGCs to local motion were recently characterized, but which inhibitory neurons suppress W3-RGCs' responses to global motion, how these neurons encode motion information, and how their connections are organized along the excitatory circuit axis remains unknown. Here, we find that a genetically identified amacrine cell (AC) type, TH2-AC, exhibits fast responses to global motion and slow responses to local motion. Optogenetic stimulation shows that TH2-ACs provide strong GABAA receptor-mediated input to W3-RGCs but only weak input to upstream excitatory neurons. Cell-type-specific silencing reveals that temporally coded inhibition from TH2-ACs cancels W3-RGC spike responses to global but not local motion stimuli and, thus, controls the feature selectivity of OMS signals sent to the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tahnbee Kim
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA; Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Daniel Kerschensteiner
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA; Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, MO 63110, USA.
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45
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Rivlin-Etzion M, Grimes WN, Rieke F. Flexible Neural Hardware Supports Dynamic Computations in Retina. Trends Neurosci 2018; 41:224-237. [PMID: 29454561 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2018.01.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2017] [Revised: 01/24/2018] [Accepted: 01/25/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The ability of the retina to adapt to changes in mean light intensity and contrast is well known. Classically, however, adaptation is thought to affect gain but not to change the visual modality encoded by a given type of retinal neuron. Recent findings reveal unexpected dynamic properties in mouse retinal neurons that challenge this view. Specifically, certain cell types change the visual modality they encode with variations in ambient illumination or following repetitive visual stimulation. These discoveries demonstrate that computations performed by retinal circuits with defined architecture can change with visual input. Moreover, they pose a major challenge for central circuits that must decode properties of the dynamic visual signal from retinal outputs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Rivlin-Etzion
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, 76100, Israel.
| | - William N Grimes
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
| | - Fred Rieke
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
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46
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Homeostatic plasticity shapes the visual system's first synapse. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1220. [PMID: 29089553 PMCID: PMC5663853 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01332-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Accepted: 09/08/2017] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Vision in dim light depends on synapses between rods and rod bipolar cells (RBCs). Here, we find that these synapses exist in multiple configurations, in which single release sites of rods are apposed by one to three postsynaptic densities (PSDs). Single RBCs often form multiple PSDs with one rod; and neighboring RBCs share ~13% of their inputs. Rod-RBC synapses develop while ~7% of RBCs undergo programmed cell death (PCD). Although PCD is common throughout the nervous system, its influences on circuit development and function are not well understood. We generate mice in which ~53 and ~93% of RBCs, respectively, are removed during development. In these mice, dendrites of the remaining RBCs expand in graded fashion independent of light-evoked input. As RBC dendrites expand, they form fewer multi-PSD contacts with rods. Electrophysiological recordings indicate that this homeostatic co-regulation of neurite and synapse development preserves retinal function in dim light. Retinal rod bipolar cells (RBCs) partially undergo programmed cell death triggering cell density-dependent plasticity. This study shows that increased removal of RBCs using genetic approaches causes dendrites of the remaining RBCs to expand and contact more rod photoreceptors while reducing connectivity with each.
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47
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Compartmentalized dendritic signaling in a multitasking retinal interneuron. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:11268-11270. [PMID: 29073042 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1715503114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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48
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Abstract
Amacrine cells are a diverse set of local circuit neurons of the inner retina, and they all release either GABA or glycine, amino acid neurotransmitters that are generally inhibitory. But some types of amacrine cells have another function besides inhibiting other neurons. One glycinergic amacrine cell, the Aii type, excites a subset of bipolar cells via extensive gap junctions while inhibiting others at chemical synapses. Many types of GABAergic amacrine cells also release monoamines, acetylcholine, or neuropeptides. There is now good evidence that another type of amacrine cell releases glycine at some of its synapses and releases the excitatory amino acid glutamate at others. The glutamatergic synapses are made onto a subset of retinal ganglion cells and amacrine cells and have the asymmetric postsynaptic densities characteristic of central excitatory synapses. The glycinergic synapses are made onto other types of ganglion cells and have the symmetric postsynaptic densities characteristic of central inhibitory synapses. These amacrine cells, which contain vesicular glutamate transporter 3, will be the focus of this brief review.
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49
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Hsiang JC, Johnson KP, Madisen L, Zeng H, Kerschensteiner D. Local processing in neurites of VGluT3-expressing amacrine cells differentially organizes visual information. eLife 2017; 6:31307. [PMID: 29022876 PMCID: PMC5653236 DOI: 10.7554/elife.31307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2017] [Accepted: 10/11/2017] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Neurons receive synaptic inputs on extensive neurite arbors. How information is organized across arbors and how local processing in neurites contributes to circuit function is mostly unknown. Here, we used two-photon Ca2+ imaging to study visual processing in VGluT3-expressing amacrine cells (VG3-ACs) in the mouse retina. Contrast preferences (ON vs. OFF) varied across VG3-AC arbors depending on the laminar position of neurites, with ON responses preferring larger stimuli than OFF responses. Although arbors of neighboring cells overlap extensively, imaging population activity revealed continuous topographic maps of visual space in the VG3-AC plexus. All VG3-AC neurites responded strongly to object motion, but remained silent during global image motion. Thus, VG3-AC arbors limit vertical and lateral integration of contrast and location information, respectively. We propose that this local processing enables the dense VG3-AC plexus to contribute precise object motion signals to diverse targets without distorting target-specific contrast preferences and spatial receptive fields.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jen-Chun Hsiang
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States.,Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States
| | - Keith P Johnson
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States.,Graduate Program in Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States
| | - Linda Madisen
- Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, United States
| | - Hongkui Zeng
- Allen Institute for Brain Science, Seattle, United States
| | - Daniel Kerschensteiner
- Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States.,Department of Neuroscience, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States.,Hope Center for Neurological Disorders, Washington University School of Medicine, Saint Louis, United States
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50
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Local synaptic integration enables ON-OFF asymmetric and layer-specific visual information processing in vGluT3 amacrine cell dendrites. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017; 114:11518-11523. [PMID: 28973895 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1711622114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
A basic scheme of neuronal organization in the mammalian retina is the segregation of ON and OFF pathways in the inner plexiform layer (IPL), where glutamate is released from ON and OFF bipolar cell terminals in separate inner (ON) and outer (OFF) sublayers in response to light intensity increments and decrements, respectively. However, recent studies have found that vGluT3-expressing glutamatergic amacrine cells (GACs) generate ON-OFF somatic responses and release glutamate onto both ON and OFF ganglion cell types, raising the possibility of crossover excitation in violation of the canonical ON-OFF segregation scheme. To test this possibility, we recorded light-evoked Ca2+ responses from dendrites of individual GACs infected with GCaMP6s in mouse. Under two-photon imaging, a single GAC generated rectified local dendritic responses, showing ON-dominant responses in ON sublayers and OFF-dominant responses in OFF sublayers. This unexpected ON-OFF segregation within a small-field amacrine cell arose from local synaptic processing, mediated predominantly by synaptic inhibition. Multiple forms of synaptic inhibition compartmentalized the GAC dendritic tree and endowed all dendritic varicosities with a small-center, strong-surround receptive field, which varied in receptive field size and degree of ON-OFF asymmetry with IPL depth. The results reveal a form of short-range dendritic autonomy that enables a small-field, dual-transmitter amacrine cell to process diverse dendritic functions in a stratification level- and postsynaptic target-specific manner, while preserving the fundamental ON-OFF segregation scheme for parallel visual processing and high spatial resolution for small object motion and uniformity detection.
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