Presence of the vomeronasal system in aquatic salamanders

Eisthen, Heather L.

doi:10.1098/rstb.2000.0669

Cited by 55 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 11 publications

(18 reference statements)

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“…While the amphibian species listed above have all been shown to secrete and respond to pheromones, apparently detected by the VNO, these species are all semi-aquatic, raising the possibility that the vomeronasal organ might have evolved separately in amniotes and in amphibians that spend at least part of their adult lives on land. The absence of the VNO in the aquatic proteid amphibians would seem to lend this theory credence, however a functional VNO is found both in fully aquatic axolotls and amphiumid salamanders [26] indicating that life underwater is not a barrier to VNO function. It should also be noted that the oceans and seas in which VNO-lacking marine mammals [65] live are very different environments to the freshwater streams and ponds that many amphibians live in.…”

Section: Amphibian Chemosensory Receptorsmentioning

confidence: 95%

The evolution of pheromonal communication

Swaney

Keverne

2009

Behavioural Brain Research

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Small-brained rodents have been the principle focus for pheromonal research and have provided comprehensive insights into the chemosensory mechanisms that underpin pheromonal communication and the hugely important roles that pheromones play in behavioural regulation. However, pheromonal communication does not start or end with the mouse and the rat, and work in amphibians reveals much about the likely evolutionary origins of the chemosensory systems that mediate pheromonal effects. The dual olfactory organs (the main olfactory epithelium and the vomeronasal organ), their receptors and their separate projection pathways appear to have ancient evolutionary origins, appearing in the aquatic ancestors of all tetrapods during the Devonian period and so pre-dating the transition to land. While the vomeronasal organ has long been considered an exclusively pheromonal organ, accumulating evidence indicates that it is not the sole channel for the transduction of pheromonal information and that both olfactory systems have been co-opted for the detection of different pheromone signals over the course of evolution. This has also led to great diversity in the vomeronasal and olfactory receptor families, with enormous levels of gene diversity and inactivation of genes in different species. Finally, the evolution of trichromacy as well as huge increases in social complexity have minimised the role of pheromones in the lives of primates, leading to the total inactivation of the vomeronasal system in catarrhine primates while the brain increased in size and behaviour became emancipated from hormonal regulation.

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Section: Amphibian Chemosensory Receptorsmentioning

confidence: 95%

The evolution of pheromonal communication

Swaney

Keverne

2009

Behavioural Brain Research

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“…As previously described by Jones et al [28] and Saito et al [39], the OE of the Japanese newt was divided into several grooves by ridges of the respiratory epithelium. The pattern of the grooves and ridges is also demonstrated in the epithelia of the MNC of aquatic salamanders, such as Ambystoma, Necturus and Silen [16,17,41]. In Plethodon, a terrestrial urodele, however, the OE lines whole of the dorsal and ventral walls of the MNC, and the respiratory epithelium is limited to the medial wall of the MNC and the boundary regions between the OE and VNE [12][13][14].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differential Expression of Neurofilament 200-Like Immunoreactivity in the Main Olfactory and Vomeronasal Systems of the Japanese Newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster

Soeta

Izu

Saitô

et al. 2005

The Journal of Veterinary Medical Science

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ABSTRACT. Expression of neurofilament 200 (NF200)-like immunoreactivity was examined in the main olfactory system and the vomeronasal system of the Japanese newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster, using anti-porcine NF200 monoclonal antibody (clone N52) to investigate the differences in phenotypical characteristics between these systems. The entire nasal cavity was a flattened single chamber consisting of the main nasal chamber (MNC) and the lateral nasal sinus (LNS) communicating with each other. The olfactory epithelium (OE) was present in the MNC, and the vomeronasal epithelium (VNE) was in the LNS. The OE possessed only a small number of NF200-like immunoreactive receptor neurons. The olfactory nerve and the olfactory nerve layer of the main olfactory bulb also contained a small number of NF200-like immunoreactive axons. In contrast, the VNE possessed many NF200-like immunoreactive receptor neurons. The vomeronasal nerve and the vomeronasal nerve layer of the accessory olfactory bulb contained many NF200-like immunoreactive axons. These findings in the Japanese newt indicate that NF200-like immunoreactive receptor neurons constitute a major subpopulation in the VNE and a minor subpopulation in the OE. In addition, NF200-like immunoreactivity seems to be a useful marker to distinguish the vomeronasal system from the other nervous systems including the main olfactory system in the Japanese newt. The localization of a few NF200-like immunoreactive receptor neurons in the OE might indicate that pheromone-sensitive receptor neurons are intermingled in the OE of the Japanese newt. KEY WORDS: Cynops pyrrhogaster, immunohistochemistry, Japanese newt, NF200, olfactory systems.J. Vet. Med. Sci. 67 (7): [701][702][703][704][705][706] 2005 In vertebrates, olfactory organs can possess two types of sensory epithelia, i.e., olfactory epithelium (OE) and vomeronasal epithelium (VNE). The olfactory receptor neurons in the OE project centrally through the olfactory nerve (ON) to the main olfactory bulb (MOB). On the other hand, the vomeronasal receptor neurons in the VNE project centrally through the vomeronasal nerve (VN) to the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) [1,18,23,36,52].Phylogenetically, the OE exists in all vertebrates from fish to mammals, while the VNE is thought to be absent in fish and first appears in urodele amphibians. The main olfactory system detects general odorants, while the vomeronasal system is involved in the perception of pheromonal molecules [1,18,23,36,52]. However, the physiological distinction between the OE and the VNE still remains unclear. The VNE can also respond to some kinds of general odorants [40], while reproductive behaviors and hormonal changes are also induced by pheromones in pig and sheep with destroyed VNE but intact OE [11,15].In the Japanese newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster, the OE possesses both ciliated and microvillous receptor neurons as the primitive OE in fish [4,28], and the VNE possesses only microvillous receptor neurons as that in the other tetrapod animals [2,22,28,32]. These morphologica...

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“…Recent evolutionary studies support the view that the VNS did not arise as an adaptation to terrestrial life, but fail to offer an alternative, stating only that the VNS originated in early aquatic amphibians. (17,18) If the VNS did not arise as a terrestrial adaptation, perhaps a homologous or precursor system exists in fish. Since the VNS is hypothesized to detect pheromones, Dulka (19) compared the goldfish sex pheromone system to the VNS.…”

Section: Bioessays 287 709mentioning

confidence: 99%

Origin and evolution of the vertebrate vomeronasal system viewed through system‐specific genes

Grus

Zhang

2006

BioEssays

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Tetrapods have two distinct nasal chemosensory systems, the main olfactory system and the vomeronasal system (VNS). Defined by certain morphological components, the main olfactory system is present in all groups of vertebrates, while the VNS is found only in tetrapods. Previous attempts to identify a VNS precursor in teleost fish were limited by functional and morphological characters that could not clearly distinguish between homologous and analogous systems. In the past decade, several genes that specifically function in the VNS have been discovered. Here we first describe recent evolutionary studies of mammalian VNS-specific genes. We then review evidence showing the presence and tissue-specific expression of the VNS-specific genes in teleosts, as well as co-expression patterns of these genes in specific regions of the teleost olfactory epithelium. We propose that a VNS precursor exists in teleosts and that its evolutionary origin predated the separation between teleosts and tetrapods.

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Presence of the vomeronasal system in aquatic salamanders

Cited by 55 publications

References 11 publications

The evolution of pheromonal communication

The evolution of pheromonal communication

Differential Expression of Neurofilament 200-Like Immunoreactivity in the Main Olfactory and Vomeronasal Systems of the Japanese Newt, Cynops pyrrhogaster

Origin and evolution of the vertebrate vomeronasal system viewed through system‐specific genes

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