17:00 - 19:00
Fri-S10
Hahn Lecture Hall
Chair/s:
Yoram Ben-Shaul, Marc Spehr
The symposium presents new research developments related to the mouse vomeronasal system. The talks will describe new developments related to the entire VNS pathway, from sensory neurons and sensory organ, via the accessory olfactory bulb, all the way to the amygdala and the hypothalamus.
Investigation of Ca2+-activated currents in mouse vomeronasal sensory neurons
Fri-S10-002
Presented by: Victoria K. Switacz
Victoria K. Switacz, Rudolf Degen, Marc Spehr
Department of Chemosensation, Institute for Biology II, RWTH Aachen University, Germany
The accessory olfactory system of mice regulates inter-and intraspecific communication and triggers a multitude of essential behaviors. A variety of semiochemicals serve as social cues and are detected by vomeronasal sensory neurons (VSNs) in the vomeronasal organ. Activation of vomeronasal receptors (V1Rs, V2Rs, or FPR-rs) in the microvillar membrane triggers a G-protein coupled signaling cascade resulting in Ca2+ influx and signal amplification via Ca2+-activated Cl- efflux. However, our knowledge of Ca2+ signaling and its function(s) in VSNs remains limited. Therefore, we investigated Ca2+-activated channels in different VSN compartments, focusing on VSN somata. To identify and isolate currents elicited at the soma, we combined targeted Ca2+ uncaging with whole-cell patch-clamp recordings, single-cell Ca2+ imaging, and pharmacology. This approach revealed distinct Ca2+-activated potassium and chloride currents in subsets of VSNs. Notably, individual VSN current profiles appeared heterogeneous, potentially reflecting subpopulation-specific ion channel repertoires. Together, our data extend the established concept of VSN Ca2+ signaling by emphasizing additional functions of Ca2+-dependent channels in VSN somata.