The Organization and Function of the Vomeronasal System

Halpern, Mimi

doi:10.1146/annurev.ne.10.030187.001545

Cited by 705 publications

(321 citation statements)

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“…This fiber system mediates the actions of pheromones on reproductive behavior (Halpern, 1987). Olfactory nerve layer glia promote the growth of primary receptor neuron axons and allow the reestablishment and maintenance of connections with the olfactory bulb (Raisman, 1985).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

d-Serine as a Neuromodulator: Regional and Developmental Localizations in Rat Brain Glia Resemble NMDA Receptors

Schell¹,

Brady²,

Molliver³

et al. 1997

J. Neurosci.

393

349

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D-Serine is localized in mammalian brain to a discrete population of glial cells near NMDA receptors, suggesting that D-serine is an endogenous agonist of the receptor-associated glycine site. To explore this possibility, we have compared the immunohistochemical localizations of D-serine, glycine, and NMDA receptors in rat brain. In the telencephalon, D-serine is concentrated in protoplasmic astrocytes, which are abundant in neuropil in close vicinity to NMDA receptor 2A/B subunits. Ultrastructural examination of the CA1 region of hippocampus reveals D-serine in the cytosolic matrix of astrocytes that ensheath neurons and blood vessels, whereas NR2A/B is concentrated in dendritic spines. By contrast, glycine immunoreactivity in telencephalon is the lowest in brain. During postnatal week 2, D-serine levels in cerebellum are comparable to those in adult cerebral cortex but fall to undetectable levels by day 26.During week 2, we observe parallel ontogeny of D-serine in Bergmann glia and NR2A/B in Purkinje cells, suggesting a role for astrocytic D-serine in NMDA receptor-mediated synaptogenesis. D-Serine in the radial processes of Bergmann glia is also well positioned to regulate NMDA receptor-dependent granule cell migration. In the inner granule layer, D-serine is found transiently in protoplasmic astrocytes surrounding glomeruli, where it could regulate development of the mossy fiber/granule cell synapse. D-Serine seems to be the endogenous ligand of glycine sites in the telencephalon and developing cerebellum, whereas glycine predominates in the adult cerebellum, olfactory bulb, and hindbrain. Key words: D-serine; glycine; NMDA receptor; glia; D-amino acid; cerebellumActivation of NMDA receptor channels requires both glutamate and stimulation of a "glycine site" (Johnson and Ascher, 1987;Reynolds et al., 1987;Kemp and Leeson, 1993). Neurophysiological studies of expressed NMDA receptors indicate that with certain combinations of NR1 and NR2 subunits, D-serine is up to three times more potent than glycine at the glycine site (Matsui et al., 1995;Priestley et al., 1995). Although D-amino acids have long been known to exist in bacteria, worms, and insects (Corrigan, 1969), only very recently have high levels of D-serine been demonstrated in mammalian tissues, especially in the brain (Hashimoto et al., 1992a(Hashimoto et al., , 1993aNagata, 1992;Chouinard et al., 1993;Nagata et al., 1994).We have mapped D-serine immunohistochemically in rat brain and observed a pattern that parallels the localization of D-serine binding sites associated with NMDA receptors in the forebrain (Schell et al., 1995). D-Serine is concentrated in gray matter regions enriched in NMDA receptors and is selectively localized to protoplasmic astrocytes. We have also demonstrated that agonists of non-NMDA receptors enhance the efflux of preloaded D-serine from cultures of cortical type 2 astrocytes. These data suggest that D-serine is an endogenous ligand at the glycine site of many NMDA receptors and that glutamate releases D-serine from glial ...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

d-Serine as a Neuromodulator: Regional and Developmental Localizations in Rat Brain Glia Resemble NMDA Receptors

Schell¹,

Brady²,

Molliver³

et al. 1997

J. Neurosci.

393

349

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“…Hence, the VNO emerges as a sensory organ that has a distinctive functional role in perception and has differentiated for the detection of specialized chemosignals. It is a partitioned region of the olfactory system that plays a strong role in the execution of species-typical behaviors, innate social or sexual behaviors, and the initiation of specific neuroendocrine changes (Halpern, 1987;Wysocki and Meredith, 1987). Jacobson (1811; modern translation, Trotier and Døving, 1998) anatomically described this previously unknown vertebrate sensory structure (Jacobson's organ); however, nearly 2 centuries later, we do not completely understand the cellular events that take place to encode chemical information in the vertebrate VNO.…”

Section: Indexing Termsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual dimorphism and developmental expression of signal‐transduction machinery in the vomeronasal organ

Murphy

Tucker

Fadool

2001

J of Comparative Neurology

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We have explored the use of a new model to study the transduction of chemosignals in the vomeronasal organ (VNO), for which the functional pathway for chemical communication is incompletely understood. Because putative vomeronasal receptors in mammalian and other vertebrate models belong to the superfamily of G-protein-coupled receptors, the objective of the present study was to define which G-protein subunits were present in the VNO of Sternotherus odoratus (stinkpot or musk turtle) in order to provide directionality for future functional studies of the downstream signaling cascades. The turtle vomeronasal epithelium (VNE) was found to contain the G-proteins G β and G αi1-3 at the microvillar layer, the presumed site of signal tranduction in these neurons, as evidenced by immunocytochemical techniques. G αo labeled the axon bundles in the VNE and the somata of the vomeronasal sensory neurons but not the microvillar layer. Densitometric analysis of Western blots indicated that the VNO from females contained greater concentrations of G αi1-3 compared with males. Sexually immature (juvenile) turtles showed intense immunolabeling for all three subunits (G β , G αi1-3 , and G αo ) in the axon bundles and an absence of labeling in the microvillar layer. Another putative signaling component found in the microvilli of mammalian VNO, transient receptor potential channel, was also immunoreactive in S. odoratus in a gender-specific manner, as quantified by Western blot analysis. These data demonstrate the utility of Sternotherus for discerning the functional signal transduction machinery in the VNO and may suggest that gender and developmental differences in effector proteins or cellular signaling components may be used to activate sex-specific behaviors. Indexing termsG proteins; GTP-binding protein; vomeronasal organ; turtle; transient receptor potential; transient receptor potential channel Sensory systems capture information from the environment and convey these signals to higher cortical centers in the brain, where the signals are processed to render an internal depiction of the external world (Dulac and Axel, 1995). In several classes of vertebrates, chemical sensory perception is mediated by sensory neurons at two anatomically distinct locations: the main olfactory epithelium (MOE) and the vomeronasal organ (VNO; Winan and Scalia, 1970;Broadwell, 1975;Scalia and Winan, 1975;Kevetter and Winan, 1981;Shepherd, 1988). Although they are of similar embryonic and neuronal origin (Cuschieri and Bannister, 1975), the two olfactory systems appear to diverge in function. (Halpern, 1987): The sensory neurons have unique biophysical properties (Liman and Corey, 1996); the molecular identities of putative transduction proteins that involve G-protein-coupled signaling cascades are notably different (Dulac and Axel, 1995;Ryba and Tirindelli, 1997); and, finally, the sensory information transmitted from each olfactory system is directed to different brain regions (for review, see Keverne, 1999). Hence, the VNO emerges as ...

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“…Anat Rec Part A, 288A: 1009-1025, 2006. 2006 Key words: vomeronasal system; accessory olfactory bulb; growth; anatomy; mouseOdors are detected in the majority of mammals by means of two systems, the main olfactory system (MOS) and the vomeronasal system (VNS) (Halpern, 1987;Brennan, 2001;Halpern and Martínez-Marcos, 2003), which, despite some differences, basically share a common pattern of organization (Mori, 1987). Each consists of a sensory epithelium, two olfactory bulbs, and different telencephalic structures.…”

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confidence: 99%

General organization of the perinatal and adult accessory olfactory bulb in mice

et al. 2006

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The vomeronasal system is currently a topical issue since the dual functional specificity, vomeronasal system-pheromones, has recently been questioned. Irrespective of the tools used to put such specificity in doubt, the diversity of the anatomy of the system itself in the animal kingdom is probably of more importance than has previously been considered. It has to be pointed out that a true vomeronasal system is integrated by the vomeronasal organ, the accessory olfactory bulb, and the so-called vomeronasal amygdala. Therefore, it seems reasonable to establish the corresponding differences between a well-developed vomeronasal system and other areas of the nasal cavity in which putative olfactory receptors, perhaps present in other kinds of mammals, may be able to detect pheromones and to process them. In consequence, a solid pattern for one such system in one particular species needs to be chosen. Here we report on an analysis of the general morphological characteristics of the accessory olfactory bulb in mice, a species commonly used in the study of the vomeronasal system, during growth and in adults. Our results indicate that the critical period for the formation of this structure comprises the stages between the first and the fifth day after birth, when the stratification of the bulb, the peculiarities of each type of cell, and the final building of glomeruli are completed. In addition, our data suggest that the conventional plexiform layers of the main olfactory bulb are not present in the accessory bulb. Anat Rec Part A, 288A: 1009-1025, 2006. 2006 Key words: vomeronasal system; accessory olfactory bulb; growth; anatomy; mouseOdors are detected in the majority of mammals by means of two systems, the main olfactory system (MOS) and the vomeronasal system (VNS) (Halpern, 1987;Brennan, 2001;Halpern and Martínez-Marcos, 2003), which, despite some differences, basically share a common pattern of organization (Mori, 1987). Each consists of a sensory epithelium, two olfactory bulbs, and different telencephalic structures. This similarity results in the olfactory information being processed in a like manner in both systems, although there are also some specific morphological differences, and at molecular level different genes are involved in the transduction mechanism (Buck and Axel, 1991;Dulac and Axel, 1995;Mombaerts, 1999).The main olfactory (MOB) and the accessory olfactory bulbs (AOB), which are the first relay stations in each system, play a key role in the physiological mechanism of olfaction. Within the bulbs, glomeruli organize the corresponding input and output information

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The Organization and Function of the Vomeronasal System

Cited by 705 publications

References 0 publications

d-Serine as a Neuromodulator: Regional and Developmental Localizations in Rat Brain Glia Resemble NMDA Receptors

d-Serine as a Neuromodulator: Regional and Developmental Localizations in Rat Brain Glia Resemble NMDA Receptors

Sexual dimorphism and developmental expression of signal‐transduction machinery in the vomeronasal organ

General organization of the perinatal and adult accessory olfactory bulb in mice

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