Presentation Details
| Glomerular Map Formation in the Control of Social Behaviors Sydney Fearnley1, 2, Neelima Vaddadi1, 3, Emilie Dumontier1, Jean-Francois Cloutier1, 2, 3. 1Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital, Montreal, QC, Canada.2Anatomy and Cell Biology, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.3Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada |
Abstract
The flow of information and its processing in the nervous system relies on the formation of selective connections between neurons. More specifically, the establishment of accurate neural maps in sensory systems permits the detection and interpretation of cues from the environment. The formation of this circuitry depends on multiple processes, including the guidance of axons to their target fields and the formation of synapses with their synaptic partners. In the accessory olfactory system, which regulates social and sexual interactions in mice, vomeronasal sensory neurons (VSNs) project their axons to the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB), where they form synapses with second-order mitral cells inside glomeruli. Axons of VSNs expressing the same type of vomeronasal receptor coalesce together to form homogenously innervated glomeruli that are spatially conserved in the AOB. The establishment of this glomerular map is proposed to contribute to the representation of the phenotypic qualities of chemosignals detected by VSNs and to the expression of specific social behaviours. Members of the Kirrel family of receptors play a critical role in the accurate coalescence of VSNs axons into glomeruli and in the formation of the AOB glomerular map. Using cell-type specific Kirrel3 loss-of-function approaches to disrupt glomerular map formation, we establish a link between the accurate formation of the AOB glomerular map and vomeronasal acuity in the modulation of VNO-dependent behaviours.
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No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author.