No abstract

Neural development of echinoderms has always been difficult to interpret, as larval neurons degenerate at metamorphosis and a tripartite nervous system differentiates in the adult. Despite their key phylogenetic position as basal echinoderms, crinoids have been scarcely studied in developmental research. However, since they are the only extant echinoderms retaining the ancestral body plan of the group, crinoids are extremely valuable models to clarify neural evolution in deuterostomes. Antedon mediterranea is a feather star, endemic to the Mediterranean Sea. Its development includes a swimming lecithotrophic larva, the doliolaria, with basiepithelial nerve plexus, and a sessile filter‐feeding juvenile, the pentacrinoid, whose nervous system has never been described in detail. Thus, we characterized the nervous system of both these developmental stages by means of immunohistochemistry and, for the first time, in situ hybridization techniques. The results confirmed previous descriptions of doliolaria morphology and revealed that the larval apical organ contains two bilateral clusters of serotonergic cells while GABAergic neurons are localized under the adhesive pit. This suggested that different larval activities (e.g., attachment and metamorphosis) are under the control of different neural populations. In pentacrinoids, the analysis showed the presence of a cholinergic entoneural system while the ectoneural plexus appeared more composite, displaying different neural populations. The expression of three neural‐related microRNAs was described for the first time, suggesting that these are evolutionarily conserved also in basal echinoderms. Overall, our results set the stage for future investigations that will reveal new information on echinoderm evo‐devo neurobiology.

Background The evolutionary origin of the telencephalon, the most anterior part of the vertebrate brain, remains obscure. Since no obvious counterpart to the telencephalon has yet been identified in invertebrate chordates, it is difficult to trace telencephalic origins. One way to identify homologous brain parts between distantly related animal groups is to focus on the combinatorial expression of conserved regionalisation genes that specify brain regions. Results Here, we report the combined expression of conserved transcription factors known to specify the telencephalon in the vertebrates in the chordate amphioxus. Focusing on adult specimens, we detect specific co-expression of these factors in the dorsal part of the anterior brain vesicle, which we refer to as Pars anterodorsalis (PAD). As in vertebrates, expression of the transcription factors FoxG1, Emx and Lhx2/9 overlaps that of Pax4/6 dorsally and of Nkx2.1 ventrally, where we also detect expression of the Hedgehog ligand. This specific pattern of co-expression is not observed prior to metamorphosis. Similar to the vertebrate telencephalon, the amphioxus PAD is characterised by the presence of GABAergic neurons and dorsal accumulations of glutamatergic as well as dopaminergic neurons. We also observe sustained proliferation of neuronal progenitors at the ventricular zone of the amphioxus brain vesicle, as observed in the vertebrate brain. Conclusions Our findings suggest that the PAD in the adult amphioxus brain vesicle and the vertebrate telencephalon evolved from the same brain precursor region in ancestral chordates, which would imply homology of these structures. Our comparative data also indicate that this ancestral brain already contained GABA-, glutamatergic and dopaminergic neurons, as is characteristic for the olfactory bulb of the vertebrate telencephalon. We further speculate that the telencephalon might have evolved in vertebrates via a heterochronic shift in developmental timing.

Calcium-binding proteins (CBPs) can influence and react to Ca2+ transients and modulate the activity of proteins involved in both maintaining homeostatic conditions and protecting cells in harsh environmental conditions. Hibernation is a strategy that evolved in vertebrate and invertebrate species to survive in cold environments; it relies on molecular, cellular, and behavioral adaptations guided by the neuroendocrine system that together ensure unmatched tolerance to hypothermia, hypometabolism, and hypoxia. Therefore, hibernation is a useful model to study molecular neuroprotective adaptations to extreme conditions, and can reveal useful applications to human pathological conditions. In this review, we describe the known changes in Ca2+-signaling and the detection and activity of CBPs in the nervous system of vertebrate and invertebrate models during hibernation, focusing on cytosolic Ca2+ buffers and calmodulin. Then, we discuss these findings in the context of the neuroprotective and neural plasticity mechanisms in the central nervous system: in particular, those associated with cytoskeletal proteins. Finally, we compare the expression of CBPs in the hibernating nervous system with two different conditions of neurodegeneration, i.e., platinum-induced neurotoxicity and Alzheimer’s disease, to highlight the similarities and differences and demonstrate the potential of hibernation to shed light into part of the molecular mechanisms behind neurodegenerative diseases.