Neurotransmitter signaling pathways required for normal development inXenopus laevisembryos: a pharmacological survey screen

Abstract

Neurotransmitters are not only involved in brain function but are also important signaling molecules for many diverse cell types. Neurotransmitters are widely conserved, from evolutionarily ancient organisms lacking nervous systems through man. Here, we report results from a loss- and gain-of-function survey, using pharmacologic modulators of several neurotransmitter pathways to examine possible roles in normal embryogenesis. Applying reagents targeting the glutamatergic, adrenergic, and dopaminergic pathways to embryos of Xenopus laevis from gastrulation to organogenesis stages, we observed and quantified numerous malformations including craniofacial defects, hyperpigmentation, muscle mispatterning, and miscoiling of the gut. These data implicate several key neurotransmitters in new embryonic patterning roles, reveal novel earlier stages for processes involved in eye development, suggest new targets for subsequent molecular-genetic investigation, and highlight the necessity for in-depth toxicology studies of psychoactive compounds to which human embryos might be exposed during pregnancy.

The Microbiologist’s Guide to Membrane Potential Dynamics

“…Glutamate is a well known neurotransmitter [69], and the finding that glutamate is the gating molecule for the YugO channel is interesting in view of the fact that glutamate receptors mediate electrical signaling in plants [70]. Glutamate is also important for animal bioelectricity during tissue development and regenerations [71]. Systematic phylogenetic analysis of different ion channels, including YugO, would be an important step towards elucidating the evolutionary origin of bioelectrical signaling.…”

Post-SSRI Sexual Dysfunction: A Bioelectric Mechanism?

“…The well-known role of neurotransmitters in brain function has been suggested 73 to be an evolutionary extension of a more ancient and ubiquitous role in developmental (preneural) morphogenetic systems. [74][75][76] A number of neurotransmitter pathways have been identified as functioning in vertebrate development, for example, in the embryogenesis of the face, 77 eye, 78 and heart, [79][80][81][82][83][84][85][86][87] as well as invertebrate regeneration 65 and development. 88,89 SERT, and serotonin signaling more broadly, has been identified as being part of bioelectric circuits in prior work.…”

Το Μέλλον Της Όρασης

“…Οι επιστήμονες χρησιμοποίησαν γυρίνους από τους οποίους αφαίρεσαν τα μάτια και τα εμφύτευσαν στην πλάτη άλλων γυρίνων, από τους οποίους επίσης αφαίρεσαν τα φυσικά μάτια, ώστε να αναπτυχθεί η όραση στα εκτοπικά, που συνδέονταν με τη σπονδυλική στήλη. Οι επιστήμονες κατέληξαν στο συμπέρασμα ότι η τύφλωση θα μπορούσε να θεραπευθεί χωρίς να είναι απαραίτητες οι ειδικές συνδέσεις νεύρων με τον εγκέφαλο (Sullivan & Levin, 2016).…”