The sense of touch in the star-nosed mole: from mechanoreceptors to the brain

Catania, Kenneth C.

doi:10.1098/rstb.2011.0128

Cited by 42 publications

(33 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Adult star-nosed moles C. cristata (N=14, both males and females) were obtained from Vanderbilt University after being collected in Pennsylvannia under permit no. COL00087 (for details, see [46]). Animals selected for the study were of different sizes and weights (typical adult individuals are 15-20 cm long and weigh about 55 g; no systematic interindividual differences were found although the immunostaining tended to be less consistent than in mice).…”

Section: Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compartmentation of the Cerebellar Cortex: Adaptation to Lifestyle in the Star-Nosed Mole Condylura cristata

et al. 2014

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The adult mammalian cerebellum is histologically uniform. However, concealed beneath the simple laminar architecture, it is organized rostrocaudally and mediolaterally into complex arrays of transverse zones and parasagittal stripes that is both highly reproducible between individuals and generally conserved across mammals and birds. Beyond this conservation, the general architecture appears to be adapted to the animal's way of life. To test this hypothesis, we have examined cerebellar compartmentation in the talpid star-nosed mole Condylura cristata. The star-nosed mole leads a subterranean life. It is largely blind and instead uses an array of fleshy appendages (the "star") to navigate and locate its prey. The hypothesis suggests that cerebellar architecture would be modified to reduce regions receiving visual input and expand those that receive trigeminal afferents from the star. Zebrin II and phospholipase Cß4 (PLCß4) immunocytochemistry was used to map the zone-and-stripe architecture of the cerebellum of the adult star-nosed mole. The general zone-and-stripe architecture characteristic of all mammals is present in the star-nosed mole. In the vermis, the four typical transverse zones are present, two with alternating zebrin II/PLCß4 stripes, two wholly zebrin II+/PLCß4-. However, the central and nodular zones (prominent visual receiving areas) are proportionally reduced in size and conversely, the trigeminal-receiving areas (the posterior zone of the vermis and crus I/II of the hemispheres) are uncharacteristically large. We therefore conclude that cerebellar architecture is generally conserved across the Mammalia but adapted to the specific lifestyle of the species.

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Section: Animalsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Compartmentation of the Cerebellar Cortex: Adaptation to Lifestyle in the Star-Nosed Mole Condylura cristata

et al. 2014

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“…Moving to Mammalia, the article by Catania [34] considers an unusual but fascinating tactile specialist the star-nosed mole, Condylura cristata. The study of highly-specialized systems often allows better insight into more generalized ones, as a striking feature that is highly noticeable in the specialist may reflect a general but less obvious trend in its less remarkable relatives.…”

Section: Contents Of Theme Issuementioning

confidence: 99%

Active touch sensing

Prescott

Diamond

Wing

2011

Phil. Trans. R. Soc. B

200

146

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Active sensing systems are purposive and information-seeking sensory systems. Active sensing usually entails sensor movement, but more fundamentally, it involves control of the sensor apparatus, in whatever manner best suits the task, so as to maximize information gain. In animals, active sensing is perhaps most evident in the modality of touch. In this theme issue, we look at active touch across a broad range of species from insects, terrestrial and marine mammals, through to humans. In addition to analysing natural touch, we also consider how engineering is beginning to exploit physical analogues of these biological systems so as to endow robots with rich tactile sensing capabilities. The different contributions show not only the varieties of active touch-antennae, whiskers and fingertips-but also their commonalities. They explore how active touch sensing has evolved in different animal lineages, how it serves to provide rapid and reliable cues for controlling ongoing behaviour, and even how it can disintegrate when our brains begin to fail. They demonstrate that research on active touch offers a means both to understand this essential and primary sensory modality, and to investigate how animals, including man, combine movement with sensing so as to make sense of, and act effectively in, the world.

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“…Both species have evolved a well-developed somatosensory system and a rudimentary visual system in order to occupy a subterranean niche [Catania, 1999[Catania, , 2011Catania and Remple, 2002;Crish et al, 2006;Henry et al, 2006]. It has been suggested that these animals show a distinct pattern of expression of the molecular marker zebrin II (ZII, also known as aldolase C) [Ahn et al, 1994] in the cerebellum [Marzban et al, , 2015.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is Cerebellar Architecture Shaped by Sensory Ecology in the New Zealand Kiwi (Apteryx mantelli)?

Corfield

Kolominsky²,

Craciun³

et al. 2016

Brain Behav Evol

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Among some mammals and birds, the cerebellar architecture appears to be adapted to the animal's ecological niche, particularly their sensory ecology and behavior. This relationship is, however, not well understood. To explore this, we examined the expression of zebrin II (ZII) in the cerebellum of the kiwi (Apteryx mantelli), a fully nocturnal bird with auditory, tactile, and olfactory specializations and a reduced visual system. We predicted that the cerebellar architecture, particularly those regions receiving visual inputs and those that receive trigeminal afferents from their beak, would be modified in accordance with their unique way of life. The general stripe-and-transverse region architecture characteristic of birds is present in kiwi, with some differences. Folium IXcd was characterized by large ZII-positive stripes and all Purkinje cells in the flocculus were ZII positive, features that resemble those of small mammals and suggest a visual ecology unlike that of other birds. The central region in kiwi appeared reduced or modified, with folium IV containing ZII+/- stripes, unlike that of most birds, but similar to that of Chilean tinamous. It is possible that a reduced visual system has contributed to a small central region, although increased trigeminal input and flightlessness have undoubtedly played a role in shaping its architecture. Overall, like in mammals, the cerebellar architecture in kiwi and other birds may be substantially modified to serve a particular ecological niche, although we still require a larger comparative data set to fully understand this relationship.

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The sense of touch in the star-nosed mole: from mechanoreceptors to the brain

Cited by 42 publications

References 54 publications

Compartmentation of the Cerebellar Cortex: Adaptation to Lifestyle in the Star-Nosed Mole Condylura cristata

Compartmentation of the Cerebellar Cortex: Adaptation to Lifestyle in the Star-Nosed Mole Condylura cristata

Active touch sensing

Is Cerebellar Architecture Shaped by Sensory Ecology in the New Zealand Kiwi <b><i>(Apteryx mantelli)</i></b><b>?</b>

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