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Amaral-Silva L, Santin JM. Molecular profiling of CO 2/pH-sensitive neurons in the locus coeruleus of bullfrogs reveals overlapping noradrenergic and glutamatergic cell identity. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2023; 283:111453. [PMID: 37230318 PMCID: PMC10492231 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.111453] [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: 03/27/2023] [Revised: 05/03/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Locus coeruleus (LC) neurons regulate breathing by sensing CO2/pH. Neurons within the vertebrate LC are the main source of norepinephrine within the brain. However, they also use glutamate and GABA for fast neurotransmission. Although the amphibian LC is recognized as a site involved in central chemoreception for the control of breathing, the neurotransmitter phenotype of these neurons is unknown. To address this question, we combined electrophysiology and single-cell quantitative PCR to detect mRNA transcripts that define norepinephrinergic, glutamatergic, and GABAergic phenotypes in LC neurons activated by hypercapnic acidosis (HA) in American bullfrogs. Most LC neurons activated by HA had overlapping expression of noradrenergic and glutamatergic markers but did not show strong support for GABAergic transmission. Genes that encode the pH-sensitive K+ channel, TASK2, and acid-sensing cation channel, ASIC2, were most abundant, while Kir5.1 was present in 1/3 of LC neurons. The abundance of transcripts related to norepinephrine biosynthesis linearly correlated with those involved in pH sensing. These results suggest that noradrenergic neurons in the amphibian LC also use glutamate as a neurotransmitter and that CO2/pH sensitivity may be linkedto the noradrenergic cell identity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lara Amaral-Silva
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA. https://twitter.com/amaralsilva_l
| | - Joseph M Santin
- Division of Biological Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA.
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2
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Inactivity and Ca 2+ signaling regulate synaptic compensation in motoneurons following hibernation in American bullfrogs. Sci Rep 2022; 12:11610. [PMID: 35803955 PMCID: PMC9270477 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-15525-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Neural networks tune synaptic and cellular properties to produce stable activity. One form of homeostatic regulation involves scaling the strength of synapses up or down in a global and multiplicative manner to oppose activity disturbances. In American bullfrogs, excitatory synapses scale up to regulate breathing motor function after inactivity in hibernation, connecting homeostatic compensation to motor behavior. In traditional models of homeostatic synaptic plasticity, inactivity is thought to increase synaptic strength via mechanisms that involve reduced Ca2+ influx through voltage-gated channels. Therefore, we tested whether pharmacological inactivity and inhibition of voltage-gated Ca2+ channels are sufficient to drive synaptic compensation in this system. For this, we chronically exposed ex vivo brainstem preparations containing the intact respiratory network to tetrodotoxin (TTX) to stop activity and nimodipine to block L-type Ca2+ channels. We show that hibernation and TTX similarly increased motoneuron synaptic strength and that hibernation occluded the response to TTX. In contrast, inhibiting L-type Ca2+ channels did not upregulate synaptic strength but disrupted the apparent multiplicative scaling of synaptic compensation typically observed in response to hibernation. Thus, inactivity drives up synaptic strength through mechanisms that do not rely on reduced L-type channel function, while Ca2+ signaling associated with the hibernation environment independently regulates the balance of synaptic weights. Altogether, these results point to multiple feedback signals for shaping synaptic compensation that gives rise to proper network function during environmental challenges in vivo.
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Salinity Conditions during the Larval Life Stage Affect Terrestrial Habitat Choice in Juvenile Wood Frogs (Lithobates sylvaticus). J HERPETOL 2022. [DOI: 10.1670/20-123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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4
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Locus Coeruleus in Non-Mammalian Vertebrates. Brain Sci 2022; 12:brainsci12020134. [PMID: 35203898 PMCID: PMC8870555 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci12020134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2021] [Revised: 01/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The locus coeruleus (LC) is a vertebrate-specific nucleus and the primary source of norepinephrine (NE) in the brain. This nucleus has conserved properties across species: highly homogeneous cell types, a small number of cells but extensive axonal projections, and potent influence on brain states. Comparative studies on LC benefit greatly from its homogeneity in cell types and modularity in projection patterns, and thoroughly understanding the LC-NE system could shed new light on the organization principles of other more complex modulatory systems. Although studies on LC are mainly focused on mammals, many of the fundamental properties and functions of LC are readily observable in other vertebrate models and could inform mammalian studies. Here, we summarize anatomical and functional studies of LC in non-mammalian vertebrate classes, fish, amphibians, reptiles, and birds, on topics including axonal projections, gene expressions, homeostatic control, and modulation of sensorimotor transformation. Thus, this review complements mammalian studies on the role of LC in the brain.
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Lari E, Buck LT. Exposure to low temperature prepares the turtle brain to withstand anoxic environments during overwintering. J Exp Biol 2021; 224:272110. [PMID: 34498078 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.242793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 08/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
In most vertebrates, anoxia drastically reduces the production of the essential adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to power its many necessary functions, and, consequently, cell death occurs within minutes. However, some vertebrates, such as the painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii), have evolved the ability to survive months without oxygen by simultaneously decreasing ATP supply and demand, surviving the anoxic period without any apparent cellular damage. The impact of anoxia on the metabolic function of painted turtles has received a lot of attention. However, the impact of low temperature has received less attention and the interactive effect of anoxia and temperature even less. In the present study, we investigated the interactive impacts of reduced temperature and severe hypoxia on the electrophysiological properties of pyramidal neurons in painted turtle cerebral cortex. Our results show that an acute reduction in temperature from 20 to 5°C decreases membrane potential, action potential width and amplitude, and whole-cell conductance. Importantly, acute exposure to 5°C considerably slows membrane repolarization by voltage-gated K+ channels. Exposing pyramidal cells to severe hypoxia in addition to an acute temperature change slightly depolarized membrane potential but did not alter action potential amplitude or width and whole-cell conductance. These results suggest that acclimation to low temperatures, preceding severe environmental hypoxia, induces cellular responses in pyramidal neurons that facilitate survival under low oxygen concentrations. In particular, our results show that temperature acclimation invokes a change in voltage-gated K+ channel kinetics that overcomes the acute inhibition of the channel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ebrahim Lari
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 3G5.,Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6G 2E9
| | - Leslie T Buck
- Department of Cell and Systems Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 3G5.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada, M5S 3B2
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6
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Astrocytic contribution to glutamate-related central respiratory chemoreception in vertebrates. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2021; 294:103744. [PMID: 34302992 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2021.103744] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Revised: 07/01/2021] [Accepted: 07/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Central respiratory chemoreceptors play a key role in the respiratory homeostasis by sensing CO2 and H+ in brain and activating the respiratory neural network. This ability of specific brain regions to respond to acidosis and hypercapnia is based on neuronal and glial mechanisms. Several decades ago, glutamatergic transmission was proposed to be involved as a main mechanism in central chemoreception. However, a complete identification of mechanism has been elusive. At the rostral medulla, chemosensitive neurons of the retrotrapezoid nucleus (RTN) are glutamatergic and they are stimulated by ATP released by RTN astrocytes in response to hypercapnia. In addition, recent findings show that caudal medullary astrocytes in brainstem can also contribute as CO2 and H+ sensors that release D-serine and glutamate, both gliotransmitters able to activate the respiratory neural network. In this review, we describe the mammalian astrocytic glutamatergic contribution to the central respiratory chemoreception trying to trace in vertebrates the emergence of several components involved in this process.
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Santin JM. Motor inactivity in hibernating frogs: Linking plasticity that stabilizes neuronal function to behavior in the natural environment. Dev Neurobiol 2019; 79:880-891. [DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22721] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Revised: 09/07/2019] [Accepted: 09/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M. Santin
- Department of BiologyUniversity of North Carolina at Greensboro Greensboro North Carolina
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How to Build a Fast and Highly Sensitive Sound Detector That Remains Robust to Temperature Shifts. J Neurosci 2019; 39:7260-7276. [PMID: 31315946 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2510-18.2019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2018] [Revised: 06/13/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Frogs must have sharp hearing abilities during the warm summer months to successfully find mating partners. This study aims to understand how frog hair cell ribbon-type synapses preserve both sensitivity and temporal precision during temperature changes. Under room (∼24°C) and high (∼32°C) temperature, we performed in vitro patch-clamp recordings of hair cells and their afferent fibers in amphibian papillae of either male or female bullfrogs. Afferent fibers exhibited a wide heterogeneity in membrane input resistance (Rin) from 100 mΩ to 1000 mΩ, which may contribute to variations in spike threshold and firing frequency. At higher temperatures, most fibers increased their frequency of spike firing due to an increase in spontaneous EPSC frequencies. Hair cell resting membrane potential (Vrest) remained surprisingly stable during temperature increases, because Ca2+ influx and K+ outflux increased simultaneously. This increase in Ca2+ current likely enhanced spontaneous EPSC frequencies. These larger "leak currents" at Vrest also lowered Rin and produced higher electrical resonant frequencies. Lowering Rin will reduce the hair cells receptor potential and presumably moderate the systems sensitivity. Using membrane capacitance measurements, we suggest that hair cells can partially compensate for this reduced sensitivity by increasing exocytosis efficiency and the size of the readily releasable pool of synaptic vesicles. Furthermore, paired recordings of hair cells and their afferent fibers showed that synaptic delays shortened and multivesicular release becomes more synchronous at higher temperatures, which should improve temporal precision. Together, our results explain many previous in vivo observations on the temperature dependence of spikes in auditory nerves.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The vertebrate inner ear detects and transmits auditory information over a broad dynamic range of sound frequency and intensity. It achieves remarkable sensitivity to soft sounds and precise frequency selectivity. How does the ear of cold-blooded vertebrates maintain its performance level as temperature changes? More specifically, how does the hair cell to afferent fiber synapse in bullfrog amphibian papilla adjust to a wide range of physiological temperatures without losing its sensitivity and temporal fidelity to sound signals? This study uses in vitro experiments to reveal the biophysical mechanisms that explain many observations made from in vivo auditory nerve fiber recordings. We find that higher temperature facilitates vesicle exocytosis and electrical tuning to higher sound frequencies, which benefits sensitivity and selectivity.
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Janes TA, Fournier S, Chamberland S, Funk GD, Kinkead R. Respiratory motoneuron properties during the transition from gill to lung breathing in the American bullfrog. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2019; 316:R281-R297. [PMID: 30601705 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00303.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Amphibian respiratory development involves a dramatic metamorphic transition from gill to lung breathing and coordination of distinct motor outputs. To determine whether the emergence of adult respiratory motor patterns was associated with similarly dramatic changes in motoneuron (MN) properties, we characterized the intrinsic electrical properties of American bullfrog trigeminal MNs innervating respiratory muscles comprising the buccal pump. In premetamorphic tadpoles (TK stages IX-XVIII) and adult frogs, morphometric analyses and whole cell recordings were performed in trigeminal MNs identified by fluorescent retrograde labeling. Based on the amplitude of the depolarizing sag induced by hyperpolarizing voltage steps, two MN subtypes (I and II) were identified in tadpoles and adults. Compared with type II MNs, type I MNs had larger sag amplitudes (suggesting a larger hyperpolarization-activated inward current), greater input resistance, lower rheobase, hyperpolarized action potential threshold, steeper frequency-current relationships, and fast firing rates and received fewer excitatory postsynaptic currents. Postmetamorphosis, type I MNs exhibited similar sag, enhanced postinhibitory rebound, and increased action potential amplitude with a smaller-magnitude fast afterhyperpolarization. Compared with tadpoles, type II MNs from frogs received higher-frequency, larger-amplitude excitatory postsynaptic currents. Input resistance decreased and rheobase increased postmetamorphosis in all MNs, concurrent with increased soma area and hyperpolarized action potential threshold. We suggest that type I MNs are likely recruited in response to smaller, buccal-related synaptic inputs as well as larger lung-related inputs, whereas type II MNs are likely recruited in response to stronger synaptic inputs associated with larger buccal breaths, lung breaths, or nonrespiratory behaviors involving powerful muscle contractions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tara A Janes
- Department of Pediatrics, Université Laval and Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec , Québec City, Québec , Canada
| | - Stéphanie Fournier
- Department of Pediatrics, Université Laval and Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec , Québec City, Québec , Canada
| | - Simon Chamberland
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology and New York University Neuroscience Institute, New York University Langone Medical Center , New York, New York
| | - Gregory D Funk
- Department of Physiology, Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta , Edmonton, Alberta , Canada
| | - Richard Kinkead
- Department of Pediatrics, Université Laval and Institut Universitaire de Cardiologie et de Pneumologie de Québec , Québec City, Québec , Canada
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Santin JM. How important is the CO 2 chemoreflex for the control of breathing? Environmental and evolutionary considerations. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2017; 215:6-19. [PMID: 28966145 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2017.09.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2017] [Revised: 09/19/2017] [Accepted: 09/19/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Haldane and Priestley (1905) discovered that the ventilatory control system is highly sensitive to CO2. This "CO2 chemoreflex" has been interpreted to dominate control of resting arterial PCO2/pH (PaCO2/pHa) by monitoring PaCO2/pHa and altering ventilation through negative feedback. However, PaCO2/pHa varies little in mammals as ventilation tightly couples to metabolic demands, which may minimize chemoreflex control of PaCO2. The purpose of this synthesis is to (1) interpret data from experimental models with meager CO2 chemoreflexes to infer their role in ventilatory control of steady-state PaCO2, and (2) identify physiological causes of respiratory acidosis occurring normally across vertebrate classes. Interestingly, multiple rodent and amphibian models with minimal/absent CO2 chemoreflexes exhibit normal ventilation, gas exchange, and PaCO2/pHa. The chemoreflex, therefore, plays at most a minor role in ventilatory control at rest; however, the chemoreflex may be critical for recovering PaCO2 following acute respiratory acidosis induced by breath-holding and activity in many ectothermic vertebrates. An apparently small role for CO2 feedback in the genesis of normal breathing contradicts the prevailing view that central CO2/pH chemoreceptors increased in importance throughout vertebrate evolution. Since the CO2 chemoreflex contributes minimally to resting ventilation, these CO2 chemoreceptors may have instead decreased importance throughout tetrapod evolution, particularly with the onset and refinement of neural innovations that improved the matching of ventilation to tissue metabolic demands. This distinct and elusive "metabolic ventilatory drive" likely underlies steady-state PaCO2 in air-breathers. Uncovering the mechanisms and evolution of the metabolic ventilatory drive presents a challenge to clinically-oriented and comparative respiratory physiologists alike.
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Hillman SS, Hedrick MS. A metabolic hypothesis for the evolution of temperature effects on the arterial PCO2 and pH of vertebrate ectotherms. J Exp Biol 2017; 221:jeb.168955. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.168955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Accepted: 11/14/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Body temperature increases in ectothermic vertebrates characteristically lead to both increases in arterial PCO2 (PaCO2) and declines in resting arterial pH (pHa) of about 0.017 pH units/°C increase in temperature. This ‘alphastat’ pH pattern has previously been interpreted as being evolutionarily-driven by the maintenance of a constant protonation state on the imidazole moiety of histidine protein residues, hence stabilizing protein structure-function. Analysis of the existing data for interclass responses of ectothermic vertebrates show different degrees of PaCO2 increases and pH declines with temperature between the classes with reptiles>amphibians>fish. The PaCO2 at the temperature where maximal aerobic metabolism (VO2max) is achieved is significantly and positively correlated with temperature for all vertebrate classes. For ectotherms, the PaCO2 where VO2max is greatest is also correlated with VO2max indicating there is an increased driving force for CO2 efflux that is lowest in fish, intermediate in amphibians and highest in reptiles. The pattern of increased PaCO2 and the resultant reduction of pHa to increased body temperature would serve to increase CO2 efflux, O2 delivery, blood buffering capacity and maintain ventilatory scope. This represents a new hypothesis for the selective advantage of arterial pH regulation from a systems physiology perspective in addition to the advantages of maintenance of protein structure-function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stanley S. Hillman
- Department of Biology, Portland State University, Portland, OR 97207, USA
| | - Michael S. Hedrick
- Department of Biological Sciences, California State University East Bay, Hayward, CA 94542, USA
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12
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Santin JM, Hartzler LK. Environmentally induced return to juvenile-like chemosensitivity in the respiratory control system of adult bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus. J Physiol 2016; 594:6349-6367. [PMID: 27444338 DOI: 10.1113/jp272777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2016] [Accepted: 07/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS The degree to which developmental programmes or environmental signals determine physiological phenotypes remains a major question in physiology. Vertebrates change environments during development, confounding interpretation of the degree to which development (i.e. permanent processes) or phenotypic plasticity (i.e. reversible processes) produces phenotypes. Tadpoles mainly breathe water for gas exchange and frogs may breathe water or air depending on their environment and are, therefore, exemplary models to differentiate the degree to which life-stage vs. environmental context drives developmental phenotypes associated with neural control of lung breathing. Using isolated brainstem preparations and patch clamp electrophysiology, we demonstrate that adult bullfrogs acclimatized to water-breathing conditions do not exhibit CO2 and O2 chemosensitivity of lung breathing, similar to water-breathing tadpoles. Our results establish that phenotypes associated with developmental stage may arise from plasticity per se and suggest that a developmental trajectory coinciding with environmental change obscures origins of stage-dependent physiological phenotypes by masking plasticity. ABSTRACT An unanswered question in developmental physiology is to what extent does the environment vs. a genetic programme produce phenotypes? Developing animals inhabit different environments and switch from one to another. Thus a developmental time course overlapping with environmental change confounds interpretations as to whether development (i.e. permanent processes) or phenotypic plasticity (i.e. reversible processes) generates phenotypes. Tadpoles of the American bullfrog, Lithobates catesbeianus, breathe water at early life-stages and minimally use lungs for gas exchange. As adults, bullfrogs rely on lungs for gas exchange, but spend months per year in ice-covered ponds without lung breathing. Aquatic submergence, therefore, removes environmental pressures requiring lung breathing and enables separation of adulthood from environmental factors associated with adulthood that necessitate control of lung ventilation. To test the hypothesis that postmetamorphic respiratory control phenotypes arise through permanent developmental changes vs. reversible environmental signals, we measured respiratory-related nerve discharge in isolated brainstem preparations and action potential firing from CO2 -sensitive neurons in bullfrogs acclimatized to semi-terrestrial (air-breathing) and aquatic-overwintering (no air-breathing) habitats. We found that aquatic overwintering significantly reduced neuroventilatory responses to CO2 and O2 involved in lung breathing. Strikingly, this gas sensitivity profile reflects that of water-breathing tadpoles. We further demonstrated that aquatic overwintering reduced CO2 -induced firing responses of chemosensitive neurons. In contrast, respiratory rhythm generating processes remained adult-like after submergence. Our results establish that phenotypes associated with life-stage can arise from phenotypic plasticity per se. This provides evidence that developmental time courses coinciding with environmental changes obscure interpretations regarding origins of stage-dependent physiological phenotypes by masking plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M Santin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, OH, 45435, USA. .,Biomedical Sciences PhD Program, Wright State University, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, OH, 45435, USA.
| | - Lynn K Hartzler
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, OH, 45435, USA
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13
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Zena LA, Fonseca EM, Santin JM, Porto L, Gargaglioni LH, Bícego KC, Hartzler LK. Effect of temperature on chemosensitive locus coeruleus neurons of savannah monitor lizards, Varanus exanthematicus. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2016; 219:2856-2864. [PMID: 27401762 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.138800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/08/2016] [Accepted: 06/29/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Savannah monitor lizards (Varanus exanthematicus) are unusual among ectothermic vertebrates in maintaining arterial pH nearly constant during changes in body temperature in contrast to the typical α-stat regulating strategy of most other ectotherms. Given the importance of pH in the control of ventilation, we examined the CO2/H+ sensitivity of neurons from the locus coeruleus (LC) region of monitor lizard brainstems. Whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology was used to record membrane voltage in LC neurons in brainstem slices. Artificial cerebral spinal fluid equilibrated with 80% O2, 0.0-10.0% CO2, balance N2, was superfused across brainstem slices. Changes in firing rate of LC neurons were calculated from action potential recordings to quantify the chemosensitive response to hypercapnic acidosis. Our results demonstrate that the LC brainstem region contains neurons that can be excited or inhibited by, and/or are not sensitive to CO2 in V. exanthematicus While few LC neurons were activated by hypercapnic acidosis (15%), a higher proportion of the LC neurons responded by decreasing their firing rate during exposure to high CO2 at 20°C (37%); this chemosensitive response was no longer exhibited when the temperature was increased to 30°C. Further, the proportion of chemosensitive LC neurons changed at 35°C with a reduction in CO2-inhibited (11%) neurons and an increase in CO2-activated (35%) neurons. Expressing a high proportion of inhibited neurons at low temperature may provide insights into mechanisms underlying the temperature-dependent pH-stat regulatory strategy of savannah monitor lizards.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lucas A Zena
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo 14884-900, Brazil Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA National Institute of Science and Technology in Comparative Physiology (INCT Fisiologia Comparada), Brazil
| | - Elisa M Fonseca
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo 14884-900, Brazil Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA National Institute of Science and Technology in Comparative Physiology (INCT Fisiologia Comparada), Brazil
| | - Joseph M Santin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA
| | - Lays Porto
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo 14884-900, Brazil Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA National Institute of Science and Technology in Comparative Physiology (INCT Fisiologia Comparada), Brazil
| | - Luciane H Gargaglioni
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo 14884-900, Brazil National Institute of Science and Technology in Comparative Physiology (INCT Fisiologia Comparada), Brazil
| | - Kênia C Bícego
- Department of Animal Morphology and Physiology, College of Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences, São Paulo State University, Jaboticabal, São Paulo 14884-900, Brazil National Institute of Science and Technology in Comparative Physiology (INCT Fisiologia Comparada), Brazil
| | - Lynn K Hartzler
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, OH, USA
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Wilson RJA, Teppema LJ. Integration of Central and Peripheral Respiratory Chemoreflexes. Compr Physiol 2016; 6:1005-41. [PMID: 27065173 DOI: 10.1002/cphy.c140040] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
Abstract
A debate has raged since the discovery of central and peripheral respiratory chemoreceptors as to whether the reflexes they mediate combine in an additive (i.e., no interaction), hypoadditive or hyperadditive manner. Here we critically review pertinent literature related to O2 and CO2 sensing from the perspective of system integration and summarize many of the studies on which these seemingly opposing views are based. Despite the intensity and quality of this debate, we have yet to reach consensus, either within or between species. In reviewing this literature, we are struck by the merits of the approaches and preparations that have been brought to bear on this question. This suggests that either the nature of combination is not important to system responses, contrary to what has long been supposed, or that the nature of the combination is more malleable than previously assumed, changing depending on physiological state and/or respiratory requirement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard J A Wilson
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute and Alberta Children Hospital Research Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Luc J Teppema
- Department of Anesthesiology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
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15
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Santin JM, Hartzler LK. Control of lung ventilation following overwintering conditions in bullfrogs, Lithobates catesbeianus. J Exp Biol 2016; 219:2003-14. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.136259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2015] [Accepted: 04/14/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Ranid frogs in northern latitudes survive winter at cold temperatures in aquatic habitats often completely covered by ice. Cold-submerged frogs survive aerobically for several months relying exclusively on cutaneous gas exchange while maintaining temperature-specific acid-base balance. Depending on the overwintering hibernaculum, frogs in northern latitudes could spend several months without access to air, need to breathe, or chemosensory drive to use neuromuscular processes that regulate and enable pulmonary ventilation. Therefore, we performed experiments to determine whether aspects of the respiratory control system of bullfrogs, Lithobates catesbeianus, are maintained or suppressed following minimal use of air breathing in overwintering environments. Based on the necessity for control of lung ventilation in early spring, we hypothesized that critical components of the respiratory control system of bullfrogs would be functional following simulated overwintering. We found that bullfrogs recently removed from simulated overwintering environments exhibited similar resting ventilation when assessed at 24°C compared to warm-acclimated control bullfrogs. Additionally, ventilation met resting metabolic and, presumably, acid-base regulation requirements, indicating preservation of basal respiratory function despite prolonged disuse in the cold. Recently emerged bullfrogs underwent similar increases in ventilation during acute oxygen lack (aerial hypoxia) compared to warm-acclimated frogs; however, CO2-related hyperventilation was significantly blunted following overwintering. Overcoming challenges to gas exchange during overwintering have garnered attention in ectothermic vertebrates, but this study uncovers robust and labile aspects of the respiratory control system at a time point correlating with early spring following minimal/no use of lung breathing in cold-aquatic overwintering habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M. Santin
- Wright State University, Department of Biological Sciences, 3640 Colonel Glenn. Hwy. Dayton, OH 45435, USA
- Wright State University, Biomedical Sciences PhD Program, 3640 Colonel Glenn. Hwy. Dayton, OH 45435, USA
| | - Lynn K. Hartzler
- Wright State University, Department of Biological Sciences, 3640 Colonel Glenn. Hwy. Dayton, OH 45435, USA
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Santin JM, Hartzler LK. Activation state of the hyperpolarization-activated current modulates temperature-sensitivity of firing in locus coeruleus neurons from bullfrogs. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2015; 308:R1045-61. [PMID: 25833936 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00036.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2015] [Accepted: 03/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Locus coeruleus neurons of anuran amphibians contribute to breathing control and have spontaneous firing frequencies that, paradoxically, increase with cooling. We previously showed that cooling inhibits a depolarizing membrane current, the hyperpolarization-activated current (I h) in locus coeruleus neurons from bullfrogs, Lithobates catesbeianus (Santin JM, Watters KC, Putnam RW, Hartzler LK. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 305: R1451-R1464, 2013). This suggests an unlikely role for I h in generating cold activation, but led us to hypothesize that inhibition of I h by cooling functions as a physiological brake to limit the cold-activated response. Using whole cell electrophysiology in brain slices, we employed 2 mM Cs(+) (an I h antagonist) to isolate the role of I h in spontaneous firing and cold activation in neurons recorded with either control or I h agonist (cyclic AMP)-containing artificial intracellular fluid. I h did not contribute to the membrane potential (V m) and spontaneous firing at 20°C. Although voltage-clamp analysis confirmed that cooling inhibits I h, its lack of involvement in setting baseline firing and V m precluded its ability to regulate cold activation as hypothesized. In contrast, neurons dialyzed with cAMP exhibited greater baseline firing frequencies at 20°C due to I h activation. Our hypothesis was supported when the starting level of I h was enhanced by elevating cAMP because cold activation was converted to more ordinary cold inhibition. These findings indicate that situations leading to enhancement of I h facilitate firing at 20°C, yet the hyperpolarization associated with inhibiting a depolarizing cation current by cooling blunts the net V m response to cooling to oppose normal cold-depolarizing factors. This suggests that the influence of I h activation state on neuronal firing varies in the poikilothermic neuronal environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joseph M Santin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio
| | - Lynn K Hartzler
- Department of Biological Sciences, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio
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Abstract
Lung ventilation fluctuates widely with behavior but arterial PCO2 remains stable. Under normal conditions, the chemoreflexes contribute to PaCO2 stability by producing small corrective cardiorespiratory adjustments mediated by lower brainstem circuits. Carotid body (CB) information reaches the respiratory pattern generator (RPG) via nucleus solitarius (NTS) glutamatergic neurons which also target rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) presympathetic neurons thereby raising sympathetic nerve activity (SNA). Chemoreceptors also regulate presympathetic neurons and cardiovagal preganglionic neurons indirectly via inputs from the RPG. Secondary effects of chemoreceptors on the autonomic outflows result from changes in lung stretch afferent and baroreceptor activity. Central respiratory chemosensitivity is caused by direct effects of acid on neurons and indirect effects of CO2 via astrocytes. Central respiratory chemoreceptors are not definitively identified but the retrotrapezoid nucleus (RTN) is a particularly strong candidate. The absence of RTN likely causes severe central apneas in congenital central hypoventilation syndrome. Like other stressors, intense chemosensory stimuli produce arousal and activate circuits that are wake- or attention-promoting. Such pathways (e.g., locus coeruleus, raphe, and orexin system) modulate the chemoreflexes in a state-dependent manner and their activation by strong chemosensory stimuli intensifies these reflexes. In essential hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea and congestive heart failure, chronically elevated CB afferent activity contributes to raising SNA but breathing is unchanged or becomes periodic (severe CHF). Extreme CNS hypoxia produces a stereotyped cardiorespiratory response (gasping, increased SNA). The effects of these various pathologies on brainstem cardiorespiratory networks are discussed, special consideration being given to the interactions between central and peripheral chemoreflexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrice G Guyenet
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia
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18
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Sandberg K, Verbalis JG, Yosten GLC, Samson WK. Sex and basic science. A Title IX position. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2014; 307:R361-5. [PMID: 24944252 PMCID: PMC5504397 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00251.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn Sandberg
- Center for the Study of Sex Differences in Health, Aging and Disease and Department of Medicine, Georgetown University, Washington, DC; and
| | - Joseph G Verbalis
- Center for the Study of Sex Differences in Health, Aging and Disease and Department of Medicine, Georgetown University, Washington, DC; and
| | - Gina L C Yosten
- Department of Pharmacological and Physiological Science, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, Missouri
| | - Willis K Samson
- Department of Pharmacological and Physiological Science, Saint Louis University, Saint Louis, Missouri
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