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Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Stanek, E; Cheng, S; Takatoh, J; Han, B-X; Wang, F
Published in: Elife
April 30, 2014

Feeding behaviors require intricately coordinated activation among the muscles of the jaw, tongue, and face, but the neural anatomical substrates underlying such coordination remain unclear. In this study, we investigate whether the premotor circuitry of jaw and tongue motoneurons contain elements for coordination. Using a modified monosynaptic rabies virus-based transsynaptic tracing strategy, we systematically mapped premotor neurons for the jaw-closing masseter muscle and the tongue-protruding genioglossus muscle. The maps revealed that the two groups of premotor neurons are distributed in regions implicated in rhythmogenesis, descending motor control, and sensory feedback. Importantly, we discovered several premotor connection configurations that are ideally suited for coordinating bilaterally symmetric jaw movements, and for enabling co-activation of specific jaw, tongue, and facial muscles. Our findings suggest that shared premotor neurons that form specific multi-target connections with selected motoneurons are a simple and general solution to the problem of orofacial coordination.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02511.001.

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Published In

Elife

DOI

EISSN

2050-084X

Publication Date

April 30, 2014

Volume

3

Start / End Page

e02511

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Tongue
  • Synapses
  • Phenotype
  • Neurotransmitter Agents
  • Nerve Net
  • Motor Neurons
  • Motor Activity
  • Mice
  • Masseter Muscle
  • Jaw
 

Citation

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Stanek, E., Cheng, S., Takatoh, J., Han, B.-X., & Wang, F. (2014). Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination. Elife, 3, e02511. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02511
Stanek, Edward, Steven Cheng, Jun Takatoh, Bao-Xia Han, and Fan Wang. “Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination.Elife 3 (April 30, 2014): e02511. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02511.
Stanek E, Cheng S, Takatoh J, Han B-X, Wang F. Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination. Elife. 2014 Apr 30;3:e02511.
Stanek, Edward, et al. “Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination.Elife, vol. 3, Apr. 2014, p. e02511. Pubmed, doi:10.7554/eLife.02511.
Stanek E, Cheng S, Takatoh J, Han B-X, Wang F. Monosynaptic premotor circuit tracing reveals neural substrates for oro-motor coordination. Elife. 2014 Apr 30;3:e02511.

Published In

Elife

DOI

EISSN

2050-084X

Publication Date

April 30, 2014

Volume

3

Start / End Page

e02511

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Tongue
  • Synapses
  • Phenotype
  • Neurotransmitter Agents
  • Nerve Net
  • Motor Neurons
  • Motor Activity
  • Mice
  • Masseter Muscle
  • Jaw