Serotonin-immunoreactivity in the ventral nerve cord of Pycnogonida--support for individually identifiable neurons as ancestral feature of the arthropod nervous system

A microCT-based atlas of the central nervous system and midgut in sea spiders (Pycnogonida) sheds first light on evolutionary trends at the family level

Background

Pycnogonida (sea spiders) is the sister group of all other extant chelicerates (spiders, scorpions and relatives) and thus represents an important taxon to inform early chelicerate evolution. Notably, phylogenetic analyses have challenged traditional hypotheses on the relationships of the major pycnogonid lineages (families), indicating external morphological traits previously used to deduce inter-familial affinities to be highly homoplastic. This erodes some of the support for phylogenetic information content in external morphology and calls for the study of additional data classes to test and underpin in-group relationships advocated in molecular analyses. In this regard, pycnogonid internal anatomy remains largely unexplored and taxon coverage in the studies available is limited.

Results

Based on micro-computed X-ray tomography and 3D reconstruction, we created a comprehensive atlas of in-situ representations of the central nervous system and midgut layout in all pycnogonid families. Beyond that, immunolabeling for tubulin and synapsin was used to reveal selected details of ganglionic architecture. The ventral nerve cord consistently features an array of separate ganglia, but some lineages exhibit extended composite ganglia, due to neuromere fusion. Further, inter-ganglionic distances and ganglion positions relative to segment borders vary, with an anterior shift in several families. Intersegmental nerves target longitudinal muscles and are lacking if the latter are reduced. Across families, the midgut displays linear leg diverticula. In Pycnogonidae, however, complex multi-branching diverticula occur, which may be evolutionarily correlated with a reduction of the heart.

Conclusions

Several gross neuroanatomical features are linked to external morphology, including intersegmental nerve reduction in concert with trunk segment fusion, or antero-posterior ganglion shifts in partial correlation to trunk elongation/compaction. Mapping on a recent phylogenomic phylogeny shows disjunct distributions of these traits. Other characters show no such dependency and help to underpin closer affinities in sub-branches of the pycnogonid tree, as exemplified by the tripartite subesophageal ganglion of Pycnogonidae and Rhynchothoracidae. Building on this gross anatomical atlas, future studies should now aim to leverage the full potential of neuroanatomy for phylogenetic interrogation by deciphering pycnogonid nervous system architecture in more detail, given that pioneering work on neuron subsets revealed complex character sets with unequivocal homologies across some families.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12983-022-00459-8.

The visual pathway in sea spiders (Pycnogonida) displays a simple serial layout with similarities to the median eye pathway in horseshoe crabs

BACKGROUND

Phylogenomic studies over the past two decades have consolidated the major branches of the arthropod tree of life. However, especially within the Chelicerata (spiders, scorpions, and kin), interrelationships of the constituent taxa remain controversial. While sea spiders (Pycnogonida) are firmly established as sister group of all other extant representatives (Euchelicerata), euchelicerate phylogeny itself is still contested. One key issue concerns the marine horseshoe crabs (Xiphosura), which recent studies recover either as sister group of terrestrial Arachnida or nested within the latter, with significant impact on postulated terrestrialization scenarios and long-standing paradigms of ancestral chelicerate traits. In potential support of a nested placement, previous neuroanatomical studies highlighted similarities in the visual pathway of xiphosurans and some arachnopulmonates (scorpions, whip scorpions, whip spiders). However, contradictory descriptions of the pycnogonid visual system hamper outgroup comparison and thus character polarization.

RESULTS

To advance the understanding of the pycnogonid brain and its sense organs with the aim of elucidating chelicerate visual system evolution, a wide range of families were studied using a combination of micro-computed X-ray tomography, histology, dye tracing, and immunolabeling of tubulin, the neuropil marker synapsin, and several neuroactive substances (including histamine, serotonin, tyrosine hydroxylase, and orcokinin). Contrary to previous descriptions, the visual system displays a serial layout with only one first-order visual neuropil connected to a bilayered arcuate body by catecholaminergic interneurons. Fluorescent dye tracing reveals a previously reported second visual neuropil as the target of axons from the lateral sense organ instead of the eyes.

CONCLUSIONS

Ground pattern reconstruction reveals remarkable neuroanatomical stasis in the pycnogonid visual system since the Ordovician or even earlier. Its conserved layout exhibits similarities to the median eye pathway in euchelicerates, especially in xiphosurans, with which pycnogonids share two median eye pairs that differentiate consecutively during development and target one visual neuropil upstream of the arcuate body. Given multiple losses of median and/or lateral eyes in chelicerates, and the tightly linked reduction of visual processing centers, interconnections between median and lateral visual neuropils in xiphosurans and arachnopulmonates are critically discussed, representing a plausible ancestral condition of taxa that have retained both eye types.

Neuroanatomy in a middle Cambrian mollisoniid and the ancestral nervous system organization of chelicerates

Recent years have witnessed a steady increase in reports of fossilized nervous tissues among Cambrian total-group euarthropods, which allow reconstructing the early evolutionary history of these animals. Here, we describe the central nervous system of the stem-group chelicerate Mollisonia symmetrica from the mid-Cambrian Burgess Shale. The fossilized neurological anatomy of M. symmetrica includes optic nerves connected to a pair of lateral eyes, a putative condensed cephalic synganglion, and a metameric ventral nerve cord. Each trunk tergite is associated with a condensed ganglion bearing lateral segmental nerves, and linked by longitudinal connectives. The nervous system is preserved as reflective carbonaceous films underneath the phosphatized digestive tract. Our results suggest that M. symmetrica illustrates the ancestral organization of stem-group Chelicerata before the evolution of the derived neuroanatomical characters observed in Cambrian megacheirans and extant representatives. Our findings reveal a conflict between the phylogenetic signals provided by neuroanatomical and appendicular data, which we interpret as evidence of mosaic evolution in the chelicerate stem-lineage.

What Is an “Arachnid”? Consensus, Consilience, and Confirmation Bias in the Phylogenetics of Chelicerata

The basal phylogeny of Chelicerata is one of the opaquest parts of the animal Tree of Life, defying resolution despite application of thousands of loci and millions of sites. At the forefront of the debate over chelicerate relationships is the monophyly of Arachnida, which has been refuted by most analyses of molecular sequence data. A number of phylogenomic datasets have suggested that Xiphosura (horseshoe crabs) are derived arachnids, refuting the traditional understanding of arachnid monophyly. This result is regarded as controversial, not least by paleontologists and morphologists, due to the widespread perception that arachnid monophyly is unambiguously supported by morphological data. Moreover, some molecular datasets have been able to recover arachnid monophyly, galvanizing the belief that any result that challenges arachnid monophyly is artefactual. Here, we explore the problems of distinguishing phylogenetic signal from noise through a series of in silico experiments, focusing on datasets that have recently supported arachnid monophyly. We assess the claim that filtering by saturation rate is a valid criterion for recovering Arachnida. We demonstrate that neither saturation rate, nor the ability to assemble a molecular phylogenetic dataset supporting a given outcome with maximal nodal support, is a guarantor of phylogenetic accuracy. Separately, we review empirical morphological phylogenetic datasets to examine characters supporting Arachnida and the downstream implication of a single colonization of terrestrial habitats. We show that morphological support of arachnid monophyly is contingent upon a small number of ambiguous or incorrectly coded characters, most of these tautologically linked to adaptation to terrestrial habitats.

Organization of the central nervous system and innervation of cephalic sensory structures in the water bear Echiniscus testudo (Tardigrada: Heterotardigrada) revisited

The tardigrade brain has been the topic of several neuroanatomical studies, as it is key to understanding the evolution of the central nervous systems in Panarthropoda (Tardigrada + Onychophora + Arthropoda). The gross morphology of the brain seems to be well conserved across tardigrades despite often disparate morphologies of their heads and cephalic sensory structures. As such, the general shape of the brain and its major connections to the rest of the central nervous system have been mapped out already by early tardigradologists. Despite subsequent investigations primarily based on transmission electron microscopy or immunohistochemistry, characterization of the different regions of the tardigrade brain has progressed relatively slowly and open questions remain. In an attempt to improve our understanding of different brain regions, we reinvestigated the central nervous system of the heterotardigrade Echiniscus testudo using anti-synapsin and anti-acetylated α-tubulin immunohistochemistry in order to visualize the number and position of tracts, commissures, and neuropils. Our data revealed five major synapsin-immunoreactive domains along the body: a large unitary, horseshoe-shaped neuropil in the head and four neuropils in the trunk ganglia, supporting the hypothesis that the dorsal brain is serially homologous with the ventral trunk ganglia. At the same time, the pattern of anti-synapsin and anti-tubulin immunoreactivity differs between the ganglia, adding to the existing evidence that each of the four trunk ganglia is unique in its morphology. Anti-tubulin labeling further revealed two commissures within the central brain neuropil, one of which is forked, and additional sets of extracerebral cephalic commissures associated with the stomodeal nervous system and the ventral cell cluster. Furthermore, our results showing the innervation of each of the cephalic sensilla in E. testudo support the homology of subsets of these structures with the sensory fields of eutardigrades.

Phylogenomic Resolution of Sea Spider Diversification through Integration of Multiple Data Classes

Despite significant advances in invertebrate phylogenomics over the past decade, the higher-level phylogeny of Pycnogonida (sea spiders) remains elusive. Due to the inaccessibility of some small-bodied lineages, few phylogenetic studies have sampled all sea spider families. Previous efforts based on a handful of genes have yielded unstable tree topologies. Here, we inferred the relationships of 89 sea spider species using targeted capture of the mitochondrial genome, 56 conserved exons, 101 ultraconserved elements, and 3 nuclear ribosomal genes. We inferred molecular divergence times by integrating morphological data for fossil species to calibrate 15 nodes in the arthropod tree of life. This integration of data classes resolved the basal topology of sea spiders with high support. The enigmatic family Austrodecidae was resolved as the sister group to the remaining Pycnogonida and the small-bodied family Rhynchothoracidae as the sister group of the robust-bodied family Pycnogonidae. Molecular divergence time estimation recovered a basal divergence of crown group sea spiders in the Ordovician. Comparison of diversification dynamics with other marine invertebrate taxa that originated in the Paleozoic suggests that sea spiders and some crustacean groups exhibit resilience to mass extinction episodes, relative to mollusk and echinoderm lineages.

Localization of neurons expressing choline acetyltransferase, serotonin and/or FMRFamide in the central nervous system of the decapod shore crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus

Although it is now established that neurons in crustacea contain multiple transmitter substances, little is know about patterns of expression and co-expression or about the functional effects of such co-transmission. The present study was designed to characterize the distributions and potential colocalization of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), serotonin (5-HT) and neuropeptide H-Phe-Met-Arg-Phe-NH2 (FMRFamide) in the central nervous system (CNS) of the Asian shore crab, Hemigrapsus sanguineus using immunohistochemical analyses in combination with laser scanning confocal microscopy. ChAT was found to be expressed by small, medium-sized, and large neurons in all regions of the brain and ventral nerve cord (VNC). For the most part, ChAT, FMRFamide, and 5-HT are expressed in different neurons, although some colocalization of ChAT- with FMRFamide- or 5-HT-LIR is observed in small and medium-sized cells, mostly neurons that immunostain only weakly. In the brain, such double immunolabeling is observed primarily in neurons of the protocerebrum and, to a particularly great extent, in local olfactory interneurons of the deutocerebrum. The clusters of neurons in the VNC that stain most intensely for ChAT, FMRFamide, and 5-HT, with colocalization in some cases, are located in the subesophageal ganglia. This colocalization appears to be related to function, since it is present in regions of the CNS characterized by multiple afferent projections and outputs to a variety of functionally related centers involved in various physiological and behavioral processes. Further elucidation of the functional significance of these neurons and of the widespread process of co-transmission in the crustaceans should provide fascinating new insights.

Histaminergic interneurons in the ventral nerve cord: assessment of their value for Euarthropod phylogeny

Despite numerous approaches to the resolution of euarthropod phylogeny, mainly based on modern sequence information and traditional external morphology, the resulting hypotheses are often contradictory and leave many questions about euarthropod evolution unanswered. The comparison of developmental and structural aspects of the nervous system has shown to be a valuable contribution to the assessment of current phylogenetic hypotheses. One promising approach for the generation of new character sets is the morphology of transmitter systems and the discovery of individually identifiable neurons, which allow phylogenetic comparisons on the single cell level. In this context, the serotonin transmitter system has been investigated to a considerable degree. Studies to date have yielded important stimuli to our understanding of euarthropod relationships and the evolution of their nervous systems. However, data on other transmitter systems remain fragmented, and their value with respect to phylogenetic questions remains speculative. The biogenic amine histamine is a promising transmitter; a substantial amount of data has been reported in the literature and the homology of some histaminergic neurons has been suggested. Here, we present a comprehensive review of histaminergic neurons in the ventral nerve cord of Euarthropoda. Using immunocytochemical labeling of histamine combined with confocal laser-scanning microscopy, we investigated the transmitter system in phylogenetically relevant taxa, such as Zygentoma, Remipedia, Diplopoda, and Arachnida. By reconstructing ground patterns, we evaluated the significance of this specific character set for euarthropod phylogeny. With this approach, we identified a set of neurons, which can be considered homologous within the respective major taxon. In conclusion, the histaminergic system contains useful information for our understanding of euarthropod phylogeny, supporting the proposed clades Tetraconata and Mandibulata. Furthermore, this character set has considerable potential to help resolve relationships within the major clades at a deeper level of taxonomy, due to the considerable variability in neurite morphology.

Comparison of ventral organ development across Pycnogonida (Arthropoda, Chelicerata) provides evidence for a plesiomorphic mode of late neurogenesis in sea spiders and myriapods

BACKGROUND

Comparative studies of neuroanatomy and neurodevelopment provide valuable information for phylogenetic inference. Beyond that, they reveal transformations of neuroanatomical structures during animal evolution and modifications in the developmental processes that have shaped these structures. In the extremely diverse Arthropoda, such comparative studies contribute with ever-increasing structural resolution and taxon coverage to our understanding of nervous system evolution. However, at the neurodevelopmental level, in-depth data remain still largely confined to comparably few laboratory model organisms. Therefore, we studied postembryonic neurogenesis in six species of the bizarre Pycnogonida (sea spiders), which - as the likely sister group of all remaining chelicerates - promise to illuminate neurodevelopmental changes in the chelicerate lineage.

RESULTS

We performed in vivo cell proliferation experiments with the thymidine analogs 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine and 5-ethynl-2'-deoxyuridine coupled to fluorescent histochemical staining and immunolabeling, in order to compare ventral nerve cord anatomy and to localize and characterize centers of postembryonic neurogenesis. We report interspecific differences in the architecture of the subesophageal ganglion (SEG) and show the presence of segmental "ventral organs" (VOs) that act as centers of neural cell production during gangliogenesis. These VOs are either incorporated into the ganglionic soma cortex or found on the external ganglion surface. Despite this difference, several shared features support homology of the two VO types, including (1) a specific arrangement of the cells around a small central cavity, (2) the presence of asymmetrically dividing neural stem cell-like precursors, (3) the migration of newborn cells along corresponding pathways into the cortex, and (4) the same VO origin and formation earlier in development.

CONCLUSIONS

Evaluation of our findings relative to current hypotheses on pycnogonid phylogeny resolves a bipartite SEG and internal VOs as plesiomorphic conditions in pycnogonids. Although chelicerate taxa other than Pycnogonida lack comparable VOs, they are a characteristic feature of myriapod gangliogenesis. Accordingly, we propose internal VOs with neurogenic function to be part of the ground pattern of Arthropoda. Further, our findings illustrate the importance of dense sampling in old arthropod lineages - even if as gross-anatomically uniform as Pycnogonida - in order to reliably differentiate plesiomorphic from apomorphic neurodevelopmental characteristics prior to outgroup comparison.

Scorpions pectines - Idiosyncratic chemo- and mechanosensory organs

Scorpions possess specialised chemosensory appendages, the pectines. These comb-shaped limbs are located ventrally behind the walking legs. Like the antennae of mandibulate arthropods, they also serve a mechanosensory function. However, more than 90% of the sometimes well above 100,000 sensory neurons projecting from a pectine to the central nervous system are chemosensory. There are two primary projection neuropils. The posterior one, immediately adjacent to the pectine nerve entrance, has an intriguing substructure reminiscent of the olfactory glomeruli observed in the primary chemosensory neuropils of many arthropods and indeed of most bilaterian animals. There are further similarities, particularly to the antennal lobes of mandibulate arthropods, including dense innervation by a relatively small number of putative serotonergic interneurons and the presence of GABA immunoreactivity, indicative of inhibitory interactions. Scorpion idiosyncrasies include the flattened shape and broad size range of the glomerulus-like neuropil compartments. Further, these compartments are often not clearly delimited and form layers in the neuropil that are arranged like onion peels. In summary, the pectine appendages of scorpions and their central nervous projections appear as promising study subjects, particularly regarding comparative examination of chemosensory representation and processing strategies. The possibility of combined, rather than discrete, representations of chemo- and mechanosensory inputs should merit further study.

Serotonergic neurons in the ventral nerve cord of Chilopoda - a mandibulate pattern of individually identifiable neurons

BACKGROUND

Given the numerous hypotheses concerning arthropod phylogeny, independent data are needed to supplement knowledge based on traditional external morphology and modern molecular sequence information. One promising approach involves comparisons of the structure and development of the nervous system. Along these lines, the morphology of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in the ventral nerve cord has been investigated in numerous tetraconate taxa (Crustacea and Hexapoda). It has been shown that these neurons can be identified individually due to their comparably low number, characteristic soma position, and neurite morphology, thus making it possible to establish homologies at the single cell level. Within Chilopoda (centipedes), detailed analyses of major branching patterns of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons are missing, but are crucial for developing meaningful conclusions on the homology of single cells.

RESULTS

In the present study, we re-investigated the distribution and projection patterns of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in the ventral nerve cord of three centipede species: Scutigera coleoptrata, Lithobius forficatus, and Scolopendra oraniensis. The centipede serotonergic system in the ventral nerve cord contains defined groups of individually identifiable neurons. An anterior and two posterior immunoreactive neurons per hemiganglion with contralateral projections, a pair of ipsilateral projecting lateral neurons (an autapomorphic character for Chilopoda), as well as a postero-lateral group of an unclear number of cells are present in the ground pattern of Chilopoda.

CONCLUSIONS

Comparisons to the patterns of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons of tetraconate taxa support the homology of anterior and posterior neurons. Our results thus support a sister group relationship of Myriapoda and Tetraconata and, further, a mandibulate ground pattern of individually identifiable serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in the ventral nerve cord. Medial neurons are not considered to be part of the tetraconate ground pattern, but could favor the 'Miracrustacea hypothesis', uniting Remipedia, Cephalocarida, and Hexapoda.

No sight, no smell? - Brain anatomy of two amphipod crustaceans with different lifestyles

The brain anatomy of Niphargus puteanus and Orchestia cavimana, two amphipod species with different lifestyles, has been studied using a variety of recent techniques. The general aspects of the brain anatomy of both species correspond to those of other malacostracans. However, both species lack hemiellipsoid bodies. Furthermore, related to their lifestyle certain differences have been observed. The aquatic subterranean species N. puteanus lacks eye structures, the optic nerve, and the two outer optic neuropils lamina and medulla. Only partial remains of the lobula have been detected. In contrast to this, the central complex in the protocerebrum and the olfactory glomeruli in the deutocerebrum are well differentiated. The terrestrial species Orchestia cavimana shows a reduced first antenna, the absence of olfactory neuropils in the deutocerebrum, and a reduction of the olfactory globular tract. The characteristics in defining the hemiellipsoid bodies are critically discussed. Contradictions about presence or absence of this neuropil are due to different conceptualizations. A comparison with other crustaceans that live in dark environments reveal similar patterns of optic system reduction, but to different degrees following a centripetal pattern. Retaining the olfactory system seems a general problem of terrestrialization in crustaceans with the notable exception of terrestrial hermit crabs.

Serotonin-containing neurons in basal insects: In search of ground patterns among tetraconata

The ventral nerve cord of Tetraconata contains a comparably low number of serotonin-immunoreactive neurons, facilitating individual identification of cells and their characteristic neurite morphology. This offers the rather unique possibility of establishing homologies at the single cell level. Because phylogenetic relationships within Tetraconata are still discussed controversially, comparisons of individually identifiable neurons can help to unravel these issues. Serotonin immunoreactivity has been investigated in numerous tetraconate taxa, leading to reconstructions of hypothetical ground patterns for major lineages. However, detailed descriptions of basal insects are still missing, but are crucial for meaningful evolutionary considerations. We investigated the morphology of individually identifiable serotonin-immunoreactive neurons in the ventral nerve cord of Zygentoma (Thermobia domestica, Lepisma saccharina, Atelura formicaria) and Archaeognatha (Machilis germanica, Dilta hibernica). To improve immunocytochemical resolution, we also performed preincubation experiments with 5-hydroxy-L-tryptophan and serotonin. Additionally, we checked for immunolabeling of tryptophan hydroxylase, an enzyme associated with the synthesis of serotonin. Besides the generally identified groups of anterolateral, medial, and posterolateral neurons within each ganglion of the ventral nerve cord, we identified several other immunoreactive cells, which seem to have no correspondence in other tetraconates. Furthermore, we show that not all immunoreactive neurons produce serotonin, but have the capability for serotonin uptake. Comparisons with the patterns of serotonin-containing neurons in major tetraconate taxa suggest a close phylogenetic relationship of Remipedia, Cephalocarida, and Hexapoda, supporting the Miracrustacea hypothesis. J. Comp. Neurol., 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Comp. Neurol. 525:79-115, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The pattern of a specimen of Pycnogonum litorale (Arthropoda, Pycnogonida) with a supernumerary leg can be explained with the "boundary model" of appendage formation

A malformed adult female specimen of Pycnogonum litorale (Pycnogonida) with a supernumerary leg in the right body half is described concerning external and internal structures. The specimen was maintained in our laboratory culture after an injury in the right trunk region during a late postembryonic stage. The supernumerary leg is located between the second and third walking legs. The lateral processes connecting to these walking legs are fused to one large structure. Likewise, the coxae 1 of the second and third walking legs and of the supernumerary leg are fused to different degrees. The supernumerary leg is a complete walking leg with mirror image symmetry as evidenced by the position of joints and muscles. It is slightly smaller than the normal legs, but internally, it contains a branch of the ovary and a gut diverticulum as the other legs. The causes for this malformation pattern found in the Pycnogonum individual are reconstructed in the light of extirpation experiments in insects, which led to supernumerary mirror image legs, and the “boundary model” for appendage differentiation.