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Complexin-1 enhances ultrasound neurotransmission in the mammalian auditory pathway

Meiling Liu1,2, Changliang Wang1, Lifang Huo1,2

  • 1GMU-GIBH Joint School of Life Sciences, The Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macau Joint Laboratory for Cell Fate Regulation and Diseases, Guangzhou National Laboratory, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China.

Nature Genetics
|June 4, 2024
PubMed

Insights

Microbats use echolocation, unlike vision-reliant megabats. Researchers found that CPLX1 in parvalbumin-positive neurons enhances ultrasound perception across the auditory pathway in mammals.

Area of Science:

  • Neuroscience
  • Auditory Neuroscience
  • Comparative Biology

Background:

  • Microbats use echolocation for navigation and hunting, while megabats rely on vision.
  • Understanding the neural basis of ultrasound perception is crucial for deciphering sensory adaptations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the neural mechanisms underlying ultrasound perception in microbats compared to megabats.
  • To identify specific neuronal populations and molecular factors involved in echolocation-related auditory processing.

Main Methods:

  • Construction of reference genomes and single-nucleus atlases for four bat species.
  • Electrophysiological recordings and neuronal silencing experiments in mouse auditory cortex.
  • Analysis of gene expression, particularly complexins (CPLX1-CPLX4), in parvalbumin-positive (PV+) neurons.

Main Results:

  • Parvalbumin-positive (PV+) neurons show cross-species differences and respond to ultrasound.
  • Silencing PV+ neurons impaired ultrasound perception in mice.
  • Microbat PV+ neurons highly express CPLX1, enhancing neurotransmission efficiency, unlike megabat PV+ neurons.
  • CPLX1 perturbation impaired ultrasound perception; CPLX1 functions broadly in the microbat auditory pathway.

Conclusions:

  • CPLX1 expression in PV+ neurons and throughout the auditory pathway enhances mammalian ultrasound neurotransmission.
  • This finding highlights a key molecular adaptation for echolocation in microbats.
  • Convergent evolution of CPLX1 function is observed in echolocating microbats and whales.

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