Article
Neurosciences
Michael Jay, Malcolm A. MacIver, David L. McLean
Summary: This study investigates how spinal circuits contribute to direction control during ongoing locomotion in larval zebrafish. The results show that directed swimming involves changes in motor output duration and increased recruitment of motor neurons, without affecting the timing of spiking along the body. The study also reveals different recruitment patterns in excitatory and inhibitory interneurons, supporting the modular control of steering and propulsion by spinal premotor circuits.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)
Review
Neurosciences
Lin-Han Wang, Wen-Qun Ding, Yan-Gang Sun
Summary: The somatosensory system processes various types of information and plays a crucial role in sensory perception and body movement. The spinal ascending pathways, particularly the spinal projection neurons, are key nodes in transmitting somatosensory information from the periphery to the brain. However, the mechanisms underlying somatosensory information processing by these pathways are still not fully understood, and recent studies have shed light on their diversity and functional roles.
TRENDS IN NEUROSCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Yohei Kokudo, Takahiro Arakawa, Hiroo Takahashi, Hideki Kobara, Masaki Kamada, Kazushi Deguchi, Tetsuo Touge, Tsutomu Masaki, Tohru Yamamoto
Summary: This study assessed spinal tract formation in neurons from different spinal regions in a chick embryo. The ascending axons primarily took similar paths, with some variations depending on their originating segments. The elongation rates of these axons were primarily constant and tended to increase over time, with observed differences based on the originating segments, providing an overall understanding of early ascending spinal tract formation.
Article
Biology
Baruch Haimson, Yoav Hadas, Nimrod Bernat, Artur Kania, Monica A. Daley, Yuval Cinnamon, Aharon Lev-Tov, Avihu Klar
Summary: Peripheral and intraspinal feedback are crucial for shaping and updating spinal networks that control motor behavior. dI2 spinal interneurons in chicks receive synaptic input from afferents and premotor neurons, and are involved in local spinal circuits and lumbo-brachial coupling. Silencing these neurons results in destabilized stepping and wide-base walking gait in hatchlings, indicating their contribution to bipedal gait stabilization.
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Curtis A. Benson, Kai-Lan Olson, Siraj Patwa, Marike L. Reimer, Lakshmi Bangalore, Myriam Hill, Stephen G. Waxman, Andrew M. Tan
Summary: Research using viral intervention techniques in mice after spinal cord injury found that knocking out Rac1 protein can restore dendritic spine development and reduce H-reflex excitability, thereby reversing spasticity. This indicates a potential mechanistic relationship between abnormal motor neuron dendritic spines and spasticity induced by SCI.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Biology
Courtney T. Shepard, Amanda M. Pocratsky, Brandon L. Brown, Morgan A. Van Rijswijck, Rachel M. Zalla, Darlene A. Burke, Johnny R. Morehouse, Amberley S. Riegler, Scott R. Whittemore, David S. K. Magnuson
Summary: Silencing spared LAPNs post-SCI improves locomotor function, including paw placement order and timing, a decrease in the number of dorsal steps, restoration of left-right hindlimb coordination, and normalization of spatiotemporal features of gait. However, hindlimb-forelimb coordination was not restored. These findings highlight a neuroanatomical-functional paradox post-SCI with implications for therapeutic strategies and neuromodulation approaches.
Article
Neurosciences
Latoya L. Allen, Nicole L. Nichols, Zachary A. Asa, Anna T. Emery, Marissa C. Ciesla, Juliet V. Santiago, Ashley E. Holland, Gordon S. Mitchell, Elisa J. Gonzalez-Rothi
Summary: The study tested the hypothesis that C2 spinal hemisection (C2Hx) minimally impacts phrenic motor neuron (PMN) survival and found no evidence of PMN loss at 2- or 8-weeks post-C2Hx. This insight is crucial for studying strategies for inducing plasticity and/or regeneration within the phrenic motor system after high cervical injury.
EXPERIMENTAL NEUROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Biology
Saul Bello-Rojas, Martha W. Bagnall
Summary: The study found that sister V2a/b neurons in the zebrafish spinal cord receive input from distinct presynaptic sources, do not communicate with each other, and connect to largely distinct targets.
Article
Neurosciences
Jonathan Harnie, Johannie Audet, Alexander N. Klishko, Adam Doelman, Boris I. Prilutsky, Alain Frigon
Summary: The study found that sensorimotor circuits within the spinal cord generate backward locomotion but require additional excitability compared with forward locomotion. Spinal cats showed similar strategies for speed modulation and muscle activations during forward and backward locomotion, indicating a shared spinal locomotor network.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Chemistry, Analytical
Zheng Ao, Hongwei Cai, Zhuhao Wu, Jonathan Krzesniak, Chunhui Tian, Yvonne Y. Lai, Ken Mackie, Feng Guo
Summary: The study introduces a human spinal organoid-on-a-chip device for modeling the biology and electrophysiology of human nociceptive neurons and dorsal horn interneurons. The device allows for testing nociceptive modulators and is cost-efficient, scalable, and easy to use. By integrating human sensory-spinal-cord organoids, the method shows promise for screening and validating novel therapeutics for human pain medicine discovery.
ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
(2022)
Review
Neurosciences
Marissa C. Ciesla, Yasin B. Seven, Latoya L. Allen, Kristin N. Smith, Zachary A. Asa, Alec K. Simon, Ashley E. Holland, Juliet Santiago, Kelsey Stefan, Ashley Ross, Elisa J. Gonzalez-Rothi, Gordon S. Mitchell
Summary: The study found that there is substantial serotonergic reinnervation following cervical spinal cord injury, but intermittent hypoxia does not affect the extent of reinnervation.
EXPERIMENTAL NEUROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Qiong Zhang, Mingfu Liu, Haibin Nong, Yanan Zhang, Yiguang Bai, Pan Liu, Shaohui Zong, Gaofeng Zeng
Summary: TFHL has shown to improve motor function recovery and promote spinal cord tissue repair in rats with spinal cord injury (SCI). It reduces apoptosis and improves the functional status of neurons. TFHL also improves cell morphology, microstructure, and axonal regeneration of damaged spinal motor neurons, and promotes the secretion of neurotrophic factors. Furthermore, TFHL promotes autophagy and related protein expression both in vivo and in vitro.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Biology
Catarina Catela, Yihan Chen, Yifei Weng, Kailong Wen, Paschalis Kratsios
Summary: This study identified the transcriptome of spinal motor neurons (MNs) in mice during embryonic and postnatal stages and discovered novel genes and transcription factors related to terminal differentiation. It was found that homeodomain transcription factors, including Hoxc8, played a crucial role in maintaining the expression of terminal differentiation markers in MNs. These findings provide insights into the evolutionary role of Hox in neuronal terminal differentiation.
Article
Biology
Evdokia Menelaou, Sandeep Kishore, David L. McLean, Markus Meister
Summary: This study unravels the impact of mixed synapses within the spinal locomotor circuitry of larval zebrafish and finds that differences in mixed synapse density can contribute to excitability underestimations and connectivity overestimations, explaining the "violations" of the size principle.
Article
Neurosciences
Zijue Wang, Hongmei Duan, Fei Hao, Peng Hao, Wen Zhao, Yudan Gao, Yiming Gu, Jianren Song, Xiaoguang Li, Zhaoyang Yang
Summary: An implanted NT3-chitosan scaffold can recruit neural stem cells to the lesion region and lead to the formation of functional neural circuits, promoting recovery after spinal cord injury. The scaffold facilitates the maturation of spinal neurons and the reestablishment of neural circuits, allowing for the recovery of neuromuscular function. This finding highlights the importance of the NT3-chitosan scaffold in promoting functional recovery after paraplegia.
PROGRESS IN NEUROBIOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Neurosciences
Francesco Bolzoni, Roberto Esposti, Carlo Bruttini, Giuseppe Zenoni, Elzbieta Jankowska, Paolo Cavallari
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2017)
Article
Neurosciences
Paolo Cavallari, Francesco Bolzoni, Roberto Esposti, Carlo Bruttini
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2017)
Article
Neurosciences
Elzbieta Jankowska, Dominik Kaczmarek, Francesco Bolzoni, Ingela Hammar
JOURNAL OF NEUROPHYSIOLOGY
(2017)
Article
Neurosciences
Roberto Esposti, Carlo Bruttini, Francesco Bolzoni, Paolo Cavallari
EXPERIMENTAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2017)
Article
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Laura M. Ferrari, Sudha Sudha, Sergio Tarantino, Roberto Esposti, Francesco Bolzoni, Paolo Cavallari, Christian Cipriani, Virgilio Mattoli, Francesco Greco
Article
Physiology
Francesco Bolzoni, Roberto Esposti, Silvia M. Marchese, Nicolo G. Pozzi, Uri E. Ramirez-Pasos, Ioannis U. Isaias, Paolo Cavallari
FRONTIERS IN PHYSIOLOGY
(2018)
Article
Neurosciences
Francesco Bolzoni, Elzbieta Jankowska
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2019)
Article
Neurosciences
Francesco Bolzoni, Roberto Esposti, Elzbieta Jankowska, Ingela Hammar
Article
Physiology
Silvia M. Marchese, Roberto Esposti, Francesco Bolzoni, Paolo Cavallari
FRONTIERS IN PHYSIOLOGY
(2019)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Silvia Maria Marchese, Veronica Farinelli, Francesco Bolzoni, Roberto Esposti, Paolo Cavallari
APPLIED SCIENCES-BASEL
(2020)
Article
Neurosciences
Veronica Farinelli, Francesco Bolzoni, Silvia Maria Marchese, Roberto Esposti, Paolo Cavallari
Summary: The study revealed the presence of anticipatory postural adjustments (APAs) in trunk muscles at the onset of gait initiation. This suggests that these muscles are already active before the start of walking to support the movement.
FRONTIERS IN HUMAN NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Physiology
Roberto Esposti, Silvia M. Marchese, Veronica Farinelli, Francesco Bolzoni, Paolo Cavallari
Summary: Evidence suggests that the parietal operculum (PO) does not participate in the control of intra-limb Anticipatory Postural Adjustments (APAs), indicating that the search for an area processing motor commands to prime mover and postural muscles together will need to focus on other structures.
FRONTIERS IN PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Meeting Abstract
Physiology
S. M. Marchese, R. Esposti, F. Bolzoni, P. Cavallari
Meeting Abstract
Physiology
V Farinelli, S. M. Marchese, C. Strano, S. D'Arrigo, A. Ardissone, N. Nardocci, F. Bolzoni, R. Esposti, P. Cavallari
Meeting Abstract
Physiology
P. Cavallari, F. Bolzoni, C. Bruttini, R. Esposti