RRC ID 45640
Author Sammut M, Cook SJ, Nguyen KCQ, Felton T, Hall DH, Emmons SW, Poole RJ, Barrios A.
Title Glia-derived neurons are required for sex-specific learning in C. elegans.
Journal Nature
Abstract Sex differences in behaviour extend to cognitive-like processes such as learning, but the underlying dimorphisms in neural circuit development and organization that generate these behavioural differences are largely unknown. Here we define at the single-cell level-from development, through neural circuit connectivity, to function-the neural basis of a sex-specific learning in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. We show that sexual conditioning, a form of associative learning, requires a pair of male-specific interneurons whose progenitors are fully differentiated glia. These neurons are generated during sexual maturation and incorporated into pre-exisiting sex-shared circuits to couple chemotactic responses to reproductive priorities. Our findings reveal a general role for glia as neural progenitors across metazoan taxa and demonstrate that the addition of sex-specific neuron types to brain circuits during sexual maturation is an important mechanism for the generation of sexually dimorphic plasticity in learning.
Volume 526(7573)
Pages 385-390
Published 2015-10-15
DOI 10.1038/nature15700
PMID 26469050
PMC PMC4650210
MeSH Animals Brain / cytology Caenorhabditis elegans / cytology* Caenorhabditis elegans / physiology* Cell Division Cell Separation Cell Transdifferentiation Chemotaxis Conditioning, Classical / physiology Interneurons / classification Interneurons / cytology* Interneurons / physiology* Learning / physiology* Male Neural Pathways Neural Stem Cells / cytology Neurogenesis Neuroglia / cytology* Neuronal Plasticity Reproduction / physiology Sex Characteristics* Sexual Behavior, Animal / physiology Sexual Maturation Single-Cell Analysis
IF 42.779
Times Cited 49
WOS Category NEUROSCIENCES
Altmetric score
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The most frequently cited source X(Twitter)
Total number of mentions 200
Altmetric score changes over past 6months 0.0
Resource
C.elegans tm1996