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Related Experiment Videos

Calcium imaging of network function in the developing spinal cord.

Michael J O'Donovan1, Agnès Bonnot, Peter Wenner

  • 1Laboratory of Neural Control, Section on Developmental Neurobiology, NINDS, NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA. odonovm@ninds.nih.gov

Cell Calcium
|April 12, 2005
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

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Spinal cord activity in chick and mouse embryos shows rhythmic, synchronous neuron activation. A ventrolateral initiation site and rostrocaudal waves suggest conserved mechanisms for motor control across species.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Developmental Biology
  • Comparative Neurology

Background:

  • Spinal cord circuits generate rhythmic motor patterns essential for locomotion.
  • Understanding the spatiotemporal organization of neuronal activity is key to deciphering motor control mechanisms.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To visualize and analyze the spatiotemporal patterns of neuronal activity in developing spinal cords.
  • To investigate the initiation sites and propagation of spontaneous activity in embryonic and neonatal spinal cords.
  • To compare activity patterns between chick and mouse spinal cord preparations.

Main Methods:

  • In vitro calcium imaging of developing chick and neonatal mouse spinal cord preparations.
  • Utilizing calcium dyes for back-labeling of spinal interneurons.

Related Experiment Videos

  • Analysis of rhythmic and oscillatory components of neuronal activity.

    • Main Results:

    • Chick spinal neurons exhibited rhythmic and synchronous activation across the cord.
    • Spontaneous activity in chick spinal cords initiated in the ventrolateral region, involving specific interneurons.
    • Neonatal mouse spinal cords displayed rostrocaudal waves in motoneuron activity during locomotion-like patterns.

    Conclusions:

    • Neuronal activity in developing spinal cords is organized spatiotemporally.
    • The ventrolateral initiation site in chick spinal cords is linked to specific interneuron populations.
    • Rostrocaudal waves in mouse spinal cords suggest conserved evolutionary mechanisms for motor control, potentially shared with fish swimming.