scholarly journals Classes and Narrowing Selectivity of Olfactory Receptor Neurons of Xenopus laevis Tadpoles

2004 ◽  
Vol 123 (2) ◽  
pp. 99-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Manzini ◽  
Detlev Schild
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Xenopus Laevis ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Olfactory Receptors ◽  
Response Spectra ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
Response Profiles

In olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) of aquatic animals amino acids have been shown to be potent stimuli. Here we report on calcium imaging experiments in slices of the olfactory mucosa of Xenopus laevis tadpoles. We were able to determine the response profiles of 283 ORNs to 19 amino acids, where one profile comprises the responses of one ORN to 19 amino acids. 204 out of the 283 response profiles differed from each other. 36 response spectra occurred more than once, i.e., there were 36 classes of ORNs identically responding to the 19 amino acids. The number of ORNs that formed a class ranged from 2 to 13. Shape and duration of amino acid-elicited [Ca2+]i transients showed a high degree of similarity upon repeated stimulation with the same amino acid. Different amino acids, however, in some cases led to clearly distinguishable calcium responses in individual ORNs. Furthermore, ORNs clearly appeared to gain selectivity over time, i.e., ORNs of later developmental stages responded to less amino acids than ORNs of earlier stages. We discuss the narrowing of ORN selectivity over stages in the context of expression of olfactory receptors.

Inhibitory and excitatory responses of olfactory receptor neurons of xenopus laevis tadpoles to stimulation with amino acids

1999 ◽  
Vol 202 (8) ◽  
pp. 997-1003 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Vogler ◽  
D. Schild
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Xenopus Laevis ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Patch Clamp Technique ◽  
Olfactory Neurons ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
Patch Configuration ◽  
Excitatory Responses

Recordings were made from olfactory receptor neurons of Xenopus laevis tadpoles using the patch-clamp technique to investigate the responses of these cells to odorants. Four amino acids (glutamate, methionine, arginine and alanine) both individually and as a mixture were used as stimuli. Of the 156 olfactory neurons tested, 43 showed a response to at least one of the stimuli. Of the cells tested, 19 % responded to glutamate, 16 % to methionine, 12 % to arginine and 10 % to alanine. Each amino acid was able to induce both excitatory and inhibitory responses, although these occurred in different cells. Each amino acid produced approximately equal numbers of inhibitory and excitatory responses. Inhibitory responses could best be observed in the perforated-patch configuration using gramicidin as an ionophore and a recording configuration that is a current-clamp for fast signals and a voltage-clamp for slow signals. The diversity of the odorant responses, in particular the existence of excitatory and inhibitory responses, is not consistent with a single transduction pathway in olfactory neurons of Xenopus laevis tadpoles.

scholarly journals Single-cell transcriptomes of developing and adult olfactory receptor neurons in Drosophila

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Colleen N. McLaughlin ◽  
Maria Brbić ◽  
Qijing Xie ◽  
Tongchao Li ◽  
Felix Horns ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Sensory Modality ◽  
Antennal Segment ◽  
Olfactory Receptors ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
Sensory Responses ◽  
And Function

AbstractRecognition of environmental cues is essential for the survival of all organisms. Precise transcriptional changes occur to enable the generation and function of the neural circuits underlying sensory perception. To gain insight into these changes, we generated single-cell transcriptomes of Drosophila olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs), thermosensory and hygrosensory neurons from the third antennal segment at an early developmental and adult stage. We discovered that ORNs maintain expression of the same olfactory receptors across development. Using these receptors and computational approaches, we matched transcriptomic clusters corresponding to anatomically and physiologically defined neuronal types across multiple developmental stages. Cell-type-specific transcriptomes, in part, reflected axon trajectory choices in early development and sensory modality in adults. Our analysis also uncovered type-specific and broadly expressed genes that could modulate adult sensory responses. Collectively, our data reveal important transcriptomic features of sensory neuron biology and provides a resource for future studies of their development and physiology.

Highly Specific Olfactory Receptor Neurons for Types of Amino Acids in the Channel Catfish

2007 ◽  
Vol 98 (4) ◽  
pp. 1909-1918 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alexander A. Nikonov ◽  
John Caprio
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Olfactory Bulb ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Neutral Amino Acid ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Side Chain ◽  
Single Group ◽  
Group I ◽  
Receptor Neurons

Odorant specificity to l-α-amino acids was determined electrophysiologically for 93 single catfish olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) selected for their narrow excitatory molecular response range (EMRR) to only one type of amino acid (i.e., Group I units). These units were excited by either a basic amino acid, a neutral amino acid with a long side chain, or a neutral amino acid with a short side chain when tested at 10−7 to 10−5 M. Stimulus-induced inhibition, likely for contrast enhancement, was primarily observed in response to the types of amino acid stimuli different from that which activated a specific ORN. The high specificity of single Group I ORNs to type of amino acid was also previously observed for single Group I neurons in both the olfactory bulb and forebrain of the same species. These results indicate that for Group I neurons olfactory information concerning specific types of amino acids is processed from receptor neurons through mitral cells of the olfactory bulb to higher forebrain neurons without significant alteration in unit odorant specificity.

In Vivo Responses of Single Olfactory Receptor Neurons of Channel Catfish to Binary Mixtures of Amino Acids

1997 ◽  
Vol 77 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiesheng Kang ◽  
John Caprio
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Binary Mixtures ◽  
Ictalurus Punctatus ◽  
Channel Catfish ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Electrophysiological Response ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
First Time

Kang, Jiesheng and John Caprio. In vivo response of single olfactory receptor neurons of channel catfish to binary mixtures of amino acids. J. Neurophysiol. 77: 1–8, 1997. For the first time in any vertebrate, in vivo responses of single olfactory receptor neurons to odorant mixtures were studied quantitatively. Extracellular electrophysiological response of 54 single olfactory receptor neurons from 23 channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, to binary mixtures of amino acids and to their components were recorded simultaneously with the electroolfactogram (EOG). For 57% (73 of 128) of the tests, no significant change (N) from spontaneous activity occurred. Responses to the remaining 55 tests of binary mixtures were excitatory (E; 13%) or suppressive (S; 30%). No response type was associated with any specific mixture across the neurons sampled. Eighty-six percent of the responses of catfish olfactory receptor neurons to binary mixtures were classifed similar to at least one of the component responses, a percentage comparable (i.e., 89%) with that observed for single olfactory bulb neurons in the same species to equivalent binary mixtures. The responses of single olfactory receptor neurons to component-similar binary mixtures (i.e., component responses were both E, both S, and both N, respectively) were generally (80% of 59 tests) classified similar to the responses to the components. For E+N and S+N binary mixtures, the N component often (66% of 58 tests) reduced or concealed (i.e., “masked”) the excitatory and suppressive responses, respectively. For the majority (6 of 11 tests) of E+S binary mixtures, null activity resulted. Responses to the remaining five tests were either excitatory ( n = 3) or suppressive ( n = 2).

scholarly journals Electrophysiological evidence for acidic, basic, and neutral amino acid olfactory receptor sites in the catfish.

1984 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 403-422 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Caprio ◽  
R P Byrd
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Amino Acid ◽  
Ictalurus Punctatus ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Olfactory Receptors ◽  
Receptor Potential ◽  
Side Chains ◽  
Short Side ◽  
Neutral Amino Acids ◽  
Receptor Sites

Electrophysiological experiments indicate that olfactory receptors of the channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, contain different receptor sites for the acidic (A), basic (B), and neutral amino acids; further, at least two partially interacting neutral sites exist, one for the hydrophilic neutral amino acids containing short side chains (SCN), and the second for the hydrophobic amino acids containing long side chains (LCN). The extent of cross-adaptation was determined by comparing the electro-olfactogram (EOG) responses to 20 "test" amino acids during continuous bathing of the olfactory mucosa with water only (control) to those during each of the eight "adapting" amino acid regimes. Both the adapting and test amino acids were adjusted in concentrations to provide approximately equal response magnitudes in the unadapted state. Under all eight adapting regimes, the test EOG responses were reduced from those obtained in the unadapted state, but substantial quantitative differences resulted, depending upon the molecular structure of the adapting stimulus. Analyses of the patterns of EOG responses to the test stimuli identified and characterized the respective "transduction processes," a term used to describe membrane events initiated by a particular subset of amino acid stimuli that are intricately linked to the origin of the olfactory receptor potential. Only when the stimulus compounds interact with different transduction processes are the stimuli assumed to bind to different membrane "sites." Four relatively independent L-alpha-amino acid transduction processes (and thus at least four binding sites) identified in this report include: (a) the A process for aspartic and glutamic acids; (b) the B process for arginine and lysine; (c) the SCN process for glycine, alanine, serine, glutamine, and possibly cysteine; (d) the LCN process for methionine, ethionine, valine, norvaline, leucine, norleucine, glutamic acid-gamma-methyl ester, histidine, phenylalanine, and also possibly cysteine. The specificities of these olfactory transduction processes in the catfish are similar to those for the biochemically determined receptor sites for amino acids in other species of fishes and to amino acid transport specificities in tissues of a variety of organisms.

scholarly journals Odor sensitivity of cultured lobster olfactory receptor neurons is not dependent on process formation.

1993 ◽  
Vol 174 (1) ◽  
pp. 215-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
D A Fadool ◽  
W C Michel ◽  
B W Ache
Keyword(s):  
Voltage Clamp ◽  
Olfactory Receptor ◽  
Cell Voltage ◽  
Response Spectra ◽  
Olfactory Receptor Neurons ◽  
Process Formation ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
Dual Polarity ◽  
Odor Sensitivity

Cultured lobster olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) were surveyed for their odor sensitivity with whole-cell, voltage-clamp recording. The nature of the adequate stimuli, the degree of tuning (response spectra) of the cells, the threshold of sensitivity and the dual polarity of the odor-evoked currents are consistent with chemosensitivity in the cultured ORNs being olfactory. The ability of odors to evoke currents in cultured ORNs that lack processes suggests that lobster ORNs can be induced in vitro to insert all the elements of the transduction cascade in the soma, including those that might normally be confined to processes. This should greatly facilitate analysis of olfactory transduction in these cells.

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