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Placodal sensory ganglia coordinate the formation of the cranial visceral motor pathway
Author(s) -
TakanoMaruyama Masumi,
Chen Yiju,
Gaufo Gary O.
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
developmental dynamics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.634
H-Index - 141
eISSN - 1097-0177
pISSN - 1058-8388
DOI - 10.1002/dvdy.22273
Subject(s) - sensory system , biology , neuroscience , neural crest , anatomy , ganglion , reflex , microbiology and biotechnology , embryo
The parasympathetic reflex circuit is controlled by three basic neurons. In the vertebrate head, the sensory, and pre‐ and postganglionic neurons that comprise each circuit have stereotypic positions along the anteroposterior (AP) axis, suggesting that the circuit arises from a common developmental plan. Here, we show that precursors of the VIIth circuit are initially aligned along the AP axis, where the placode‐derived sensory neurons provide a critical “guidepost” through which preganglionic axons and their neural crest‐derived postganglionic targets navigate before reaching their distant target sites. In the absence of the placodal sensory ganglion, preganglionic axons terminate and the neural crest fated for postganglionic neurons undergo apoptosis at the site normally occupied by the placodal sensory ganglion. The stereotypic organization of the parasympathetic cranial sensory–motor circuit thus emerges from the initial alignment of its precursors along the AP axis, with the placodal sensory ganglion coordinating the formation of the motor pathway. Developmental Dynamics 239:1155–1161, 2010. © 2010 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.