Ear manipulations reveal a critical period for survival and dendritic development at the single-cell level in Mauthner neurons

Karen L Elliott; Douglas W Houston; Rhonda DeCook; Bernd Fritzsch

doi:10.1002/dneu.22287

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Ear manipulations reveal a critical period for survival and dendritic development at the single-cell level in Mauthner neurons

Journal article

Peer reviewed

Ear manipulations reveal a critical period for survival and dendritic development at the single-cell level in Mauthner neurons

Karen L Elliott, Douglas W Houston, Rhonda DeCook and Bernd Fritzsch

Developmental neurobiology (Hoboken, N.J.), Vol.75(12), pp.1339-1351

12/2015

DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22287

PMCID: PMC5010663

PMID: 25787878

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http://doi.org/10.1002/dneu.22287View

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Abstract

Second-order sensory neurons are dependent on afferents from the sense organs during a critical period in development for their survival and differentiation. Past research has mostly focused on whole populations of neurons, hampering progress in understanding the mechanisms underlying these critical phases. To move toward a better understanding of the molecular and cellular basis of afferent-dependent neuronal development, we developed a new model to study the effects of ear removal on a single identifiable cell in the hindbrain of a frog, the Mauthner cell. Ear extirpation at various stages of Xenopus laevis development defines a critical period of progressively-reduced dependency of Mauthner cell survival/differentiation on the ear afferents. Furthermore, ear removal results in a progressively decreased reduction in the number of dendritic branches. Conversely, addition of an ear results in an increase in the number of dendritic branches. These results suggest that the duration of innervation and the number of inner ear afferents play a quantitative role in Mauthner cell survival/differentiation, including dendritic development.

Immunohistochemistry

Dendrites - pathology

Sensory Receptor Cells - pathology

Xenopus laevis

Critical Period (Psychology)

Auditory Perception - physiology

Rhombencephalon - physiology

Auditory Pathways - growth & development

Sensory Deprivation - physiology

Auditory Pathways - pathology

Microscopy, Confocal

Animals

Auditory Pathways - physiology

Ear - injuries

Sensory Receptor Cells - physiology

Neurogenesis - physiology

Dendrites - physiology

Models, Animal

Imaging, Three-Dimensional

Cell Survival - physiology

Rhombencephalon - growth & development

Rhombencephalon - pathology

Details

Title: Subtitle: Ear manipulations reveal a critical period for survival and dendritic development at the single-cell level in Mauthner neurons
Creators: Karen L Elliott - Department of Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242
Douglas W Houston - Department of Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242
Rhonda DeCook - Department of Statistics and Actuarial Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242
Bernd Fritzsch - Department of Biology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, 52242
Resource Type: Journal article
Publication Details: Developmental neurobiology (Hoboken, N.J.), Vol.75(12), pp.1339-1351
DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22287
PMID: 25787878
PMCID: PMC5010663
NLM abbreviation: Dev Neurobiol
ISSN: 1932-846X
eISSN: 1932-846X
Publisher: United States
Grant note: R01 GM083999 / NIGMS NIH HHS P30 DC010362 / NIDCD NIH HHS R01DC055095590 / NIDCD NIH HHS
Language: English
Date published: 12/2015
Academic Unit: Statistics and Actuarial Science; Iowa Neuroscience Institute; Biology; Craniofacial Anomalies Research Center
Record Identifier: 9983985890002771

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