Harris Nathan, Bates Samuel, Zhuang Zihao, Bernstein Matthew, Stonemetz Jamie, Hill Tyler, Yu Yanxun V, Calarco John A, Sengupta Piali
Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, USA.
Current address: Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
bioRxiv. 2023 Jan 22:2023.01.22.525070. doi: 10.1101/2023.01.22.525070.
Neurons modify their transcriptomes in response to an animal’s experience. How specific experiences are transduced to modulate gene expression and precisely tune neuronal functions are not fully defined. Here, we describe the molecular profile of a thermosensory neuron pair in experiencing different temperature stimuli. We find that distinct salient features of the temperature stimulus including its duration, magnitude of change, and absolute value are encoded in the gene expression program in this single neuron, and identify a novel transmembrane protein and a transcription factor whose specific transcriptional dynamics are essential to drive neuronal, behavioral, and developmental plasticity. Expression changes are driven by broadly expressed activity-dependent transcription factors and corresponding -regulatory elements that nevertheless direct neuron- and stimulus-specific gene expression programs. Our results indicate that coupling of defined stimulus characteristics to the gene regulatory logic in individual specialized neuron types can customize neuronal properties to drive precise behavioral adaptation.
神经元会根据动物的经历改变其转录组。特定经历如何被转化以调节基因表达并精确调整神经元功能尚未完全明确。在这里，我们描述了一对热感觉神经元在经历不同温度刺激时的分子特征。我们发现温度刺激的不同显著特征，包括其持续时间、变化幅度和绝对值，都编码在这个单个神经元的基因表达程序中，并鉴定出一种新型跨膜蛋白和一种转录因子，其特定的转录动态对于驱动神经元、行为和发育可塑性至关重要。表达变化由广泛表达的活性依赖转录因子和相应的调控元件驱动，这些元件仍然指导神经元和刺激特异性的基因表达程序。我们的结果表明，将特定刺激特征与个体特化神经元类型中的基因调控逻辑相耦合，可以定制神经元特性以驱动精确的行为适应。
