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Initiation of Locomotion in Adult Zebrafish
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Initiation of Locomotion in Adult Zebrafish

Alexandros Kyriakatos, Riyadh Mahmood, Jessica Ausborn, Christian P. Porres, Ansgar Bueschges and Abdeljabbar El Manira
The Journal of neuroscience, v 31(23), pp 8422-8431
08 Jun 2011
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1012-11.2011
PMID: 21653846
Featured in Collection :   UN Sustainable Development Goals @ Drexel
url
https://doi.org/10.1523/jneurosci.1012-11.2011View
Published, Version of Record (VoR)Maybe Open Access (Publisher Bronze),  Open
url
https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.1012-11.2011View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

Life Sciences & Biomedicine Neurosciences Neurosciences & Neurology Science & Technology
Motor behavior is generated by specific neural circuits. Those producing locomotion are located in the spinal cord, and their activation depends on descending inputs from the brain or on sensory inputs. In this study, we have used an in vitro brainstem-spinal cord preparation from adult zebrafish to localize a region where stimulation of descending inputs can induce sustained locomotor activity. We show that a brief stimulation of descending inputs at the junction between the brainstem and spinal cord induces long-lasting swimming activity. The swimming frequencies induced are remarkably similar to those observed in freely moving adult fish, arguing that the induced locomotor episode is highly physiological. The motor pattern is mediated by activation of ionotropic glutamate and glycine receptors in the spinal cord and is not the result of synaptic interactions between neurons at the site of the stimulation in the brainstem. We also compared the activity of motoneurons during locomotor activity induced by electrical stimulation of descending inputs and by exogenously applied NMDA. Prolonged NMDA application changes the shape of the synaptic drive and action potentials in motoneurons. When escape activity occurs, the swimming activity in the intact zebrafish was interrupted and some of the motoneurons involved became inhibited in vitro. Thus, the descending inputs seem to act as a switch to turn on the activity of the spinal locomotor network in the caudal spinal cord. We propose that recurrent synaptic activity within the spinal locomotor circuits can transform a brief input into a well coordinated and long-lasting swimming pattern.

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72 citations in Web of Science
74 citations in Scopus

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Domestic collaboration
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Web of Science research areas
Neurosciences
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