The unlimited potential of the great pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis

Fodor, I; Hussein, Ahmed A.A.; Benjamin, Paul R.; Koene, Joris M.; Pirger, Zsolt

doi:10.7554/elife.56962

Cited by 90 publications

(56 citation statements)

References 180 publications

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“…Their simplicity and well-mapped CNS should enable researchers to better understand the mechanisms responsible for the expected impacts of light pollution on different behavioral and biological processes. In addition, the extensive knowledge about the underlying regulatory mechanisms and the availability of genome and transcriptome data for this species will facilitate interpretation (Fodor et al 2020 ).…”

Section: Conclusion and Future Perspectivementioning

confidence: 99%

Slowly seeing the light: an integrative review on ecological light pollution as a potential threat for mollusks

Hussein

Bloem

Fodor

et al. 2020

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Seasonal changes in the natural light condition play a pivotal role in the regulation of many biological processes in organisms. Disruption of this natural condition via the growing loss of darkness as a result of anthropogenic light pollution has been linked to species-wide shifts in behavioral and physiological traits. This review starts with a brief overview of the definition of light pollution and the most recent insights into the perception of light. We then go on to review the evidence for some adverse effects of ecological light pollution on different groups of animals and will focus on mollusks. Taken together, the available evidence suggests a critical role for light pollution as a recent, growing threat to the regulation of various biological processes in these animals, with the potential to disrupt ecosystem stability. The latter indicates that ecological light pollution is an environmental threat that needs to be taken seriously and requires further research attention.

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Section: Conclusion and Future Perspectivementioning

confidence: 99%

Slowly seeing the light: an integrative review on ecological light pollution as a potential threat for mollusks

Hussein

Bloem

Fodor

et al. 2020

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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“…Therefore, the goal of the present study was to functionally characterize the ly-GnRH/CRZ peptide. Since L. stagnalis has been a widely used model organism in invertebrate neuroscience for decades 10 , 15 – 19 , the investigation of ly-GnRH/CRZ could contribute not only specifically to the understanding of the GnRH superfamily but also more broadly to disciplines such as comparative endocrinology and neurobiology. This species possesses unique features such as a well-defined CNS, clearly defined behaviors, and accessible anatomy that can facilitate the characterization of ly-GnRH/CRZ.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Functional characterization and related evolutionary implications of invertebrate gonadotropin-releasing hormone/corazonin in a well-established model species

Fodor

Svigruha

Bozsó

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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In vertebrates, gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) peptide is the central mediator of reproduction. Homologous peptides have previously also been identified in molluscan species. However, emerging evidence suggests that these molecules might serve diverse regulatory functions and proposes to consider them as corazonin (CRZ). We previously isolated the full-length cDNA of the invGnRH/CRZ peptide (termed ly-GnRH/CRZ) in the well-established invertebrate model species, the great pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis; however, its predicted functions remain to be verified. In this study, we first confirmed the presence of the deduced active peptide from the central nervous system of L. stagnalis. Further, we performed in vivo and in vitro studies to explore the functions of ly-GnRH/CRZ. Injection of sexually mature specimens with synthetic active peptide had an inhibitory effect on locomotion and an acceleratory effect on egg-laying, but had no effect on feeding. The previously predicted modulatory effect of ly-GnRH/CRZ was supported by its identified co-localization with serotonin on the surface of the heart atria. Lastly, we demonstrated not only the presence of ly-GnRH/CRZ in the penial complex but also that ly-GnRH/CRZ-containing neurons project to the efferent penis nerve, suggesting ly-GnRH/CRZ may directly modulate the motor output of this peripheral tissue. Overall, our findings strongly support that ly-GnRH/CRZ is a multifunctional neuropeptide. These results contribute to the understanding of the GnRH superfamily and, more broadly, disciplines such as comparative endocrinology and neurobiology.

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“…To address this knowledge gap, artificial light should be separated into its relevant components: photoperiods, wavelength (color), and intensity. To disentangle the effects of two of these components, photoperiod, and intensity, while keeping wavelength constant, we here used the pond snail L. stagnalis as a model species because it offers several advantages (Fodor et al 2020 ). Firstly, this species responds in a highly consistent manner to operant conditioning of aerial respiration, the memory of which has already been shown to be altered by environmentally-relevant stimuli (Lukowiak et al 1996 , 2000 , 2010 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of photoperiod and light intensity on learning ability and memory formation of the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis

et al. 2020

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Natural light is regarded as a key regulator of biological systems and typically serves as a Zeitgeber for biological rhythms. As a natural abiotic factor, it is recognized to regulate multiple behavioral and physiological processes in animals. Disruption of the natural light regime due to light pollution may result in significant effects on animal learning and memory development. Here, we investigated whether sensitivity to various photoperiods or light intensities had an impact on intermediate-term memory (ITM) and long-term memory (LTM) formation in the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis. We also investigated the change in the gene expression level of molluscan insulin-related peptide II (MIP II) is response to the given light treatments. The results show that the best light condition for proper LTM formation is exposure to a short day (8 h light) and low light intensity (1 and 10 lx). Moreover, the more extreme light conditions (16 h and 24 h light) prevent the formation of both ITM and LTM. We found no change in MIP II expression in any of the light treatments, which may indicate that MIP II is not directly involved in the operant conditioning used here, even though it is known to be involved in learning. The finding that snails did not learn in complete darkness indicates that light is a necessary factor for proper learning and memory formation. Furthermore, dim light enhances both ITM and LTM formation, which suggests that there is an optimum since both no light and too bright light prevented learning and memory. Our findings suggest that the upsurge of artificial day length and/or night light intensity may also negatively impact memory consolidation in the wild.

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The unlimited potential of the great pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis

Cited by 90 publications

References 180 publications

Slowly seeing the light: an integrative review on ecological light pollution as a potential threat for mollusks

Slowly seeing the light: an integrative review on ecological light pollution as a potential threat for mollusks

Functional characterization and related evolutionary implications of invertebrate gonadotropin-releasing hormone/corazonin in a well-established model species

Effect of photoperiod and light intensity on learning ability and memory formation of the pond snail Lymnaea stagnalis

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