1
|
Kebschull JM, Casoni F, Consalez GG, Goldowitz D, Hawkes R, Ruigrok TJH, Schilling K, Wingate R, Wu J, Yeung J, Uusisaari MY. Cerebellum Lecture: the Cerebellar Nuclei-Core of the Cerebellum. CEREBELLUM (LONDON, ENGLAND) 2024; 23:620-677. [PMID: 36781689 PMCID: PMC10951048 DOI: 10.1007/s12311-022-01506-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/10/2022] [Indexed: 02/15/2023]
Abstract
The cerebellum is a key player in many brain functions and a major topic of neuroscience research. However, the cerebellar nuclei (CN), the main output structures of the cerebellum, are often overlooked. This neglect is because research on the cerebellum typically focuses on the cortex and tends to treat the CN as relatively simple output nuclei conveying an inverted signal from the cerebellar cortex to the rest of the brain. In this review, by adopting a nucleocentric perspective we aim to rectify this impression. First, we describe CN anatomy and modularity and comprehensively integrate CN architecture with its highly organized but complex afferent and efferent connectivity. This is followed by a novel classification of the specific neuronal classes the CN comprise and speculate on the implications of CN structure and physiology for our understanding of adult cerebellar function. Based on this thorough review of the adult literature we provide a comprehensive overview of CN embryonic development and, by comparing cerebellar structures in various chordate clades, propose an interpretation of CN evolution. Despite their critical importance in cerebellar function, from a clinical perspective intriguingly few, if any, neurological disorders appear to primarily affect the CN. To highlight this curious anomaly, and encourage future nucleocentric interpretations, we build on our review to provide a brief overview of the various syndromes in which the CN are currently implicated. Finally, we summarize the specific perspectives that a nucleocentric view of the cerebellum brings, move major outstanding issues in CN biology to the limelight, and provide a roadmap to the key questions that need to be answered in order to create a comprehensive integrated model of CN structure, function, development, and evolution.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Justus M Kebschull
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA.
| | - Filippo Casoni
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, and San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - G Giacomo Consalez
- Division of Neuroscience, San Raffaele Scientific Institute, and San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Daniel Goldowitz
- Department of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Richard Hawkes
- Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy and Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, T2N 4N1, Canada
| | - Tom J H Ruigrok
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Karl Schilling
- Department of Anatomy, Anatomy & Cell Biology, Rheinische Friedrich-Wilhelms-Universität, 53115, Bonn, Federal Republic of Germany
| | - Richard Wingate
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Joshua Wu
- Department of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Joanna Yeung
- Department of Medical Genetics, Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, Canada
| | - Marylka Yoe Uusisaari
- Neuronal Rhythms in Movement Unit, Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology, 1919-1 Tancha, Onna-Son, Kunigami-Gun, Okinawa, 904-0495, Japan.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Watanabe A, Marshall SS, Gignac PM. Dumbbell-shaped brains of Polish crested chickens as a model system for the evolution of novel brain morphologies. J Anat 2023; 243:421-430. [PMID: 37165612 PMCID: PMC10439378 DOI: 10.1111/joa.13883] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2022] [Revised: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/27/2023] [Indexed: 05/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary history of vertebrates is replete with emergence of novel brain morphologies, including the origin of the human brain. Existing model organisms and toolkits for investigating drivers of neuroanatomical innovations have largely proceeded on mammals. As such, a compelling non-mammalian model system would facilitate our understanding of how unique brain morphologies evolve across vertebrates. Here, we present the domestic chicken breed, white crested Polish chickens, as an avian model for investigating how novel brain morphologies originate. Most notably, these crested chickens exhibit cerebral herniation from anterodorsal displacement of the telencephalon, which results in a prominent protuberance on the dorsal aspect of the skull. We use a high-density geometric morphometric approach on cephalic endocasts to characterize their brain morphology. Compared with standard white Leghorn chickens (WLCs) and modern avian diversity, the results demonstrate that crested chickens possess a highly variable and unique overall brain configuration. Proportional sizes of neuroanatomical regions are within the observed range of extant birds sampled in this study, but Polish chickens differ from WLCs in possessing a relatively larger cerebrum and smaller cerebellum and medulla. Given their accessibility, phylogenetic proximity, and unique neuroanatomy, we propose that crested breeds, combined with standard chickens, form a promising comparative system for investigating the emergence of novel brain morphologies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Akinobu Watanabe
- Department of AnatomyNew York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic MedicineOld WestburyNew YorkUSA
- Division of PaleontologyAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Department of Life SciencesNatural History MuseumLondonUK
| | - Sylvia S. Marshall
- Department of AnatomyNew York Institute of Technology College of Osteopathic MedicineOld WestburyNew YorkUSA
| | - Paul M. Gignac
- Division of PaleontologyAmerican Museum of Natural HistoryNew YorkNew YorkUSA
- Department of Cellular and Molecular MedicineUniversity of Arizona College of MedicineTucsonArizonaUSA
- MicroCT Imaging Consortium for Research and OutreachUniversity of ArkansasFayettevilleArkansasUSA
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Hibi M, Matsuda K, Takeuchi M, Shimizu T, Murakami Y. Evolutionary mechanisms that generate morphology and neural-circuit diversity of the cerebellum. Dev Growth Differ 2017; 59:228-243. [DOI: 10.1111/dgd.12349] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2017] [Revised: 03/10/2017] [Accepted: 03/13/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Masahiko Hibi
- Bioscience and Biotechnology Center; Nagoya University; Nagoya 464-8601 Japan
- Graduate School of Science; Nagoya University; Nagoya Aichi 464-8602 Japan
| | - Koji Matsuda
- Bioscience and Biotechnology Center; Nagoya University; Nagoya 464-8601 Japan
- Graduate School of Science; Nagoya University; Nagoya Aichi 464-8602 Japan
| | - Miki Takeuchi
- Bioscience and Biotechnology Center; Nagoya University; Nagoya 464-8601 Japan
| | - Takashi Shimizu
- Bioscience and Biotechnology Center; Nagoya University; Nagoya 464-8601 Japan
- Graduate School of Science; Nagoya University; Nagoya Aichi 464-8602 Japan
| | - Yasunori Murakami
- Graduate School of Science and Engineering; Ehime University; Matsuyama 790-8577 Japan
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Jacobs B, Johnson NL, Wahl D, Schall M, Maseko BC, Lewandowski A, Raghanti MA, Wicinski B, Butti C, Hopkins WD, Bertelsen MF, Walsh T, Roberts JR, Reep RL, Hof PR, Sherwood CC, Manger PR. Comparative neuronal morphology of the cerebellar cortex in afrotherians, carnivores, cetartiodactyls, and primates. Front Neuroanat 2014; 8:24. [PMID: 24795574 PMCID: PMC4005950 DOI: 10.3389/fnana.2014.00024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2013] [Accepted: 04/01/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Although the basic morphological characteristics of neurons in the cerebellar cortex have been documented in several species, virtually nothing is known about the quantitative morphological characteristics of these neurons across different taxa. To that end, the present study investigated cerebellar neuronal morphology among eight different, large-brained mammalian species comprising a broad phylogenetic range: afrotherians (African elephant, Florida manatee), carnivores (Siberian tiger, clouded leopard), cetartiodactyls (humpback whale, giraffe) and primates (human, common chimpanzee). Specifically, several neuron types (e.g., stellate, basket, Lugaro, Golgi, and granule neurons; N = 317) of the cerebellar cortex were stained with a modified rapid Golgi technique and quantified on a computer-assisted microscopy system. There was a 64-fold variation in brain mass across species in our sample (from clouded leopard to the elephant) and a 103-fold variation in cerebellar volume. Most dendritic measures tended to increase with cerebellar volume. The cerebellar cortex in these species exhibited the trilaminate pattern common to all mammals. Morphologically, neuron types in the cerebellar cortex were generally consistent with those described in primates (Fox et al., 1967) and rodents (Palay and Chan-Palay, 1974), although there was substantial quantitative variation across species. In particular, Lugaro neurons in the elephant appeared to be disproportionately larger than those in other species. To explore potential quantitative differences in dendritic measures across species, MARSplines analyses were used to evaluate whether species could be differentiated from each other based on dendritic characteristics alone. Results of these analyses indicated that there were significant differences among all species in dendritic measures.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bob Jacobs
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Psychology, Colorado CollegeColorado Springs, CO, USA
| | - Nicholas L. Johnson
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Psychology, Colorado CollegeColorado Springs, CO, USA
| | - Devin Wahl
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Psychology, Colorado CollegeColorado Springs, CO, USA
| | - Matthew Schall
- Laboratory of Quantitative Neuromorphology, Psychology, Colorado CollegeColorado Springs, CO, USA
| | - Busisiwe C. Maseko
- Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the WitwatersrandJohannesburg, South Africa
| | | | | | - Bridget Wicinski
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY, USA
| | - Camilla Butti
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY, USA
| | - William D. Hopkins
- Division of Developmental and Cognitive Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research CenterAtlanta, GA, USA
| | - Mads F. Bertelsen
- Center for Zoo and Wild Animal Health, Copenhagen ZooFrederiksberg, Denmark
| | - Timothy Walsh
- Smithsonian National Zoological ParkWashington, DC, USA
| | | | - Roger L. Reep
- Department of Physiological Sciences, University of FloridaGainesville, FL, USA
| | - Patrick R. Hof
- Fishberg Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount SinaiNew York, NY, USA
| | - Chet C. Sherwood
- Department of Anthropology, The George Washington UniversityWashington, DC, USA
| | - Paul R. Manger
- Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Anatomical Sciences, University of the WitwatersrandJohannesburg, South Africa
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Abstract
The cerebellum controls smooth and skillful movements and it is also involved in higher cognitive and emotional functions. The cerebellum is derived from the dorsal part of the anterior hindbrain and contains two groups of cerebellar neurons: glutamatergic and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic neurons. Purkinje cells are GABAergic and granule cells are glutamatergic. Granule and Purkinje cells receive input from outside of the cerebellum from mossy and climbing fibers. Genetic analysis of mice and zebrafish has revealed genetic cascades that control the development of the cerebellum and cerebellar neural circuits. During early neurogenesis, rostrocaudal patterning by intrinsic and extrinsic factors, such as Otx2, Gbx2 and Fgf8, plays an important role in the positioning and formation of the cerebellar primordium. The cerebellar glutamatergic neurons are derived from progenitors in the cerebellar rhombic lip, which express the proneural gene Atoh1. The GABAergic neurons are derived from progenitors in the ventricular zone, which express the proneural gene Ptf1a. The mossy and climbing fiber neurons originate from progenitors in the hindbrain rhombic lip that express Atoh1 or Ptf1a. Purkinje cells exhibit mediolateral compartmentalization determined on the birthdate of Purkinje cells, and linked to the precise neural circuitry formation. Recent studies have shown that anatomy and development of the cerebellum is conserved between mammals and bony fish (teleost species). In this review, we describe the development of cerebellar neurons and neural circuitry, and discuss their evolution by comparing developmental processes of mammalian and teleost cerebellum.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mitsuhiro Hashimoto
- Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, 65 Tsurumai, Showa, Nagoya, Aichi, 466-8550, Japan.
| | | |
Collapse
|
6
|
Shi Z, Zhang Y, Meek J, Qiao J, Han VZ. The neuronal organization of a unique cerebellar specialization: the valvula cerebelli of a mormyrid fish. J Comp Neurol 2009; 509:449-73. [PMID: 18537139 DOI: 10.1002/cne.21735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The distal valvula cerebelli is the most prominent part of the mormyrid cerebellum. It is organized in ridges of ganglionic and molecular layers, oriented perpendicular to the granular layer. We have combined intracellular recording and labeling techniques to reveal the cellular morphology of the valvula ridges in slice preparations. We have also locally ejected tracer in slices and in intact animals to examine its input fibers. The palisade dendrites and fine axon arbors of Purkinje cells are oriented in the horizontal plane of the ridge. The dendrites of basal efferent cells and large central cells are confined to the molecular layer but are not planar. Basal efferent cell axons are thick and join the basal bundle leaving the cerebellum. Large central cell axons are also thick, and they traverse long distances in the transverse plane, with local collaterals in the ganglionic layer. Vertical cells and small central cells also have thick axons with local collaterals. The dendrites of Golgi cells are confined to the molecular layer, but their axon arbors are either confined to the granular layer or proliferate in both the granular and ganglionic layers. Dendrites of deep stellate cells are distributed in the molecular layer, with fine axon arbors in the ganglionic layer. Granule cell axons enter the molecular layer as parallel fibers without bifurcating. Climbing fibers run in the horizontal plane and terminate exclusively in the ganglionic layer. Our results confirm and extend previous studies and suggest a new concept of the circuitry of the mormyrid valvula cerebelli.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Zhigang Shi
- Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Beaverton, Oregon 97006, USA
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
7
|
Meek J, Yang JY, Han VZ, Bell CC. Morphological analysis of the mormyrid cerebellum using immunohistochemistry, with emphasis on the unusual neuronal organization of the valvula. J Comp Neurol 2008; 510:396-421. [PMID: 18663756 DOI: 10.1002/cne.21809] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
This study used immunohistochemistry, Golgi impregnation, and electron microscopy to examine the circuitry of the cerebellum of mormyrid fish. We used antibodies against the following antigens: the neurotransmitters glutamate and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA); the GABA-synthesizing enzyme glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD); GABA transporter 1; the anchoring protein for GABA and glycine receptors, gephyrin; the calcium binding proteins calbindin and calretinin; the NR1 subunit of the N-methyl-D-aspartate glutamate receptor; the metabotropic glutamate receptors mGluR1alpha and mGluR2/3; the intracellular signaling molecules calcineurin and calcium calmodulin kinase IIalpha (CAMKIIalpha); and the receptor for inositol triphosphate (IP3RIalpha). Purkinje cells are immunoreactive to anti-IP3R1alpha, anticalcineurin, and anti-mGluR1alpha. Cerebellar efferent cells (eurydendroid cells) are anticalretinin and anti-NR1 positive in the valvula but not in the corpus and caudal lobe. In contrast, climbing fibers are anticalretinin and anti-NR1 immunopositive in the corpus and caudal lobe but not in the valvula. Purkinje cells, Golgi cells, and stellate cells are GABA positive, whereas efferent cells are glutamate positive. Unipolar brush cells are immunoreactive to anti-mGluR2/3, anticalretinin, and anticalbindin. We describe a "new" cell type in the mormyrid valvula, the deep stellate cell. These cells are GABA, calretinin, and calbindin positive. They are different from superficial stellate cells in having myelinated axons that terminate massively with GAD- and gephyrin-positive terminals on the cell bodies and proximal dendrites of efferent cells. We discuss how the valvula specializations described here may act in concert with the palisade pattern of Purkinje cell dendrites for analyzing spatiotemporal patterns of parallel fiber activity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Meek
- Neurological Sciences Institute and Oregon National Primate Research Center, Oregon Health and Sciences University, Beaverton, Oregon 97006, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
8
|
de Ruiter MM, De Zeeuw CI, Hansel C. Voltage-gated sodium channels in cerebellar Purkinje cells of mormyrid fish. J Neurophysiol 2006; 96:378-90. [PMID: 16598064 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00906.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Cerebellar Purkinje cells of mormyrid fish differ in some morphological as well as physiological parameters from their counterparts in mammals. Morphologically, Purkinje cells of mormyrids have larger dendrites that are characterized by a lower degree of branching in the molecular layer. Physiologically, there are differences in electrophysiological response patterns that are related to sodium channel activity: first, sodium spikes in mormyrid Purkinje cells have low amplitudes, typically not exceeding 30 mV. Second, the response to climbing fiber stimulation in mormyrid Purkinje cells does not consist of a complex spike (with an initial fast sodium spike) as in mammals, but instead it consists of an all-or-none excitatory postsynaptic potential, the so-called climbing fiber response. Because of these unique properties, we have begun to characterize mormyrid Purkinje cells electrophysiologically. In this study, we provide a description of voltage-gated Na+ channels and conductances in Purkinje cells of the mormyrid fish Gnathonemus petersii. Various types of Na+ channel alpha-subunits, i.e., Nav1.1, Nav1.2, and Nav1.6, have been described in rodent Purkinje cells. Using immunohistochemical techniques, we found that these subunits are present in Purkinje cells of mormyrids. To test whether these Na+ channel subunits can mediate fast inactivating and resurgent Na+ currents in Gnathonemus Purkinje cells, we conducted patch-clamp recordings in acutely dissociated cells and in cerebellar slices. Both types of Na+ currents could be measured in rat and fish Purkinje cells. These data show that, despite prominent differences in electrophysiological response characteristics, Purkinje cells of rats and mormyrids share the same voltage-gated Na+ conductances.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Martijn M de Ruiter
- Department of Neuroscience, Erasmus University Medical Center, Rotterdam, The Netherlands
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
9
|
Chapman LJ, Chapman CA, Nordlie FG, Rosenberger AE. Physiological refugia: swamps, hypoxia tolerance and maintenance of fish diversity in the Lake Victoria region. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2002; 133:421-37. [PMID: 12443904 DOI: 10.1016/s1095-6433(02)00195-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 159] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
In Lake Nabugabo, Uganda, a satellite of Lake Victoria, approximately 50% of the indigenous fishes disappeared from the open waters subsequent to the establishment of the introduced predatory Nile perch, Lates niloticus. This pattern is similar to the faunal loss experienced in the much larger Lake Victoria. Several of these species persisted in wetland refugia (e.g. ecotonal wetlands, swamp lagoons); however, deep swamp refugia (habitats lying well within the dense interior of fringing wetlands), are available only to a subset of the basin fauna with extreme tolerance to hypoxia. Although air-breathers are common in deep swamp refugia; we also documented a surprisingly high richness and abundance of non-air-breathing fishes. We describe several mechanisms that may facilitate survival in deep swamp refugia including high hemoglobin concentration, high hematocrit, large gill surface area and a low critical oxygen tension (P(c)). In addition, swamp-dwelling fishes showed lower PO(2) thresholds for onset of aquatic surface respiration than the lake-dwelling fishes. This suggests higher tolerance to hypoxia in the swamp fishes because they are able to withstand a lower oxygen tension before approaching the surface. We suggest that physiological refugia may be important in modulating the impact of Nile perch and indigenous fishes in the Lake Nabugabo region; this highlights the need to evaluate relative tolerance of introduced predators and indigenous prey to environmental stressors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lauren J Chapman
- Department of Zoology, 223 Bartram Hall, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
|
11
|
Nieuwenhuys R, Pouwels E, Smulders-Kersten E. The neuronal organization of cerebellar lobe C1 in the mormyrid fish Gnathonemus Petersii (teleostei). ZEITSCHRIFT FUR ANATOMIE UND ENTWICKLUNGSGESCHICHTE 1974; 144:315-36. [PMID: 4137993 DOI: 10.1007/bf00522813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
|
12
|
|