Wang, C.* ; Vidal, B.* ; Sural, S.* ; Loer, C.* ; Aguilar, G.R.* ; Merritt, D.M.* ; Toker, I.A.* ; Vogt, M.C. ; Cros, C.C.* ; Hobert, O.*
A neurotransmitter atlas of C. elegans males and hermaphrodites.
eLife 13:46 (2024)
Mapping neurotransmitter identities to neurons is key to understanding information flow in a nervous system. It also provides valuable entry points for studying the development and plasticity of neuronal identity features. In the Caenorhabditis elegans nervous system, neurotransmitter identities have been largely assigned by expression pattern analysis of neurotransmitter pathway genes that encode neurotransmitter biosynthetic enzymes or transporters. However, many of these assignments have relied on multicopy reporter transgenes that may lack relevant cis-regulatory information and therefore may not provide an accurate picture of neurotransmitter usage. We analyzed the expression patterns of 16 CRISPR/Cas9-engineered knock-in reporter strains for all main types of neurotransmitters in C. elegans (glutamate, acetylcholine, GABA, serotonin, dopamine, tyramine, and octopamine) in both the hermaphrodite and the male. Our analysis reveals novel sites of expression of these neurotransmitter systems within both neurons and glia, as well as non-neural cells, most notably in gonadal cells. The resulting expression atlas defines neurons that may be exclusively neuropeptidergic, substantially expands the repertoire of neurons capable of co-transmitting multiple neurotransmitters, and identifies novel sites of monoaminergic neurotransmitter uptake. Furthermore, we also observed unusual co-expression patterns of monoaminergic synthesis pathway genes, suggesting the existence of novel monoaminergic transmitters. Our analysis results in what constitutes the most extensive whole-animal-wide map of neurotransmitter usage to date, paving the way for a better understanding of neuronal communication and neuronal identity specification in C. elegans.
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Publikationstyp
Artikel: Journalartikel
Dokumenttyp
Wissenschaftlicher Artikel
Typ der Hochschulschrift
Herausgeber
Schlagwörter
neurotransmitters; neural signaling; neuronal identity; Glutamic-acid Decarboxylase; Male Mating-behavior; Nervous-system; Transporter; Gaba; Gene; Serotonin; Neurons; Identification; Encodes
Keywords plus
Sprache
englisch
Veröffentlichungsjahr
2024
Prepublished im Jahr
0
HGF-Berichtsjahr
2025
ISSN (print) / ISBN
2050-084X
e-ISSN
2050-084X
ISBN
Bandtitel
Konferenztitel
Konferzenzdatum
Konferenzort
Konferenzband
Quellenangaben
Band: 13,
Heft: ,
Seiten: ,
Artikelnummer: 46
Supplement: ,
Reihe
Verlag
eLife Sciences Publications
Verlagsort
95 Regent Street, Cambridge, England
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0000-00-00
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Gutachter
Prüfer
Topic
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Veröffentlichungsdatum
0000-00-00
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0000-00-00
Anmelder/Inhaber
weitere Inhaber
Anmeldeland
Priorität
Begutachtungsstatus
Peer reviewed
POF Topic(s)
30201 - Metabolic Health
Forschungsfeld(er)
Helmholtz Diabetes Center
PSP-Element(e)
G-502596-001
Förderungen
NIH
NIH Office of Research Infrastructure Programs
Copyright
Erfassungsdatum
2025-07-23