Hypothalamic Pomc Neurons Innervate the Spinal Cord and Modulate the Excitability of Premotor Circuits.

ABSTRACT: Locomotion requires energy, yet animals need to increase locomotion in order to find and consume food in energy-deprived states. While such energy homeostatic coordination suggests brain origin, whether the central melanocortin 4 receptor (Mc4r) system directly modulates locomotion through motor circuits is unknown. Here, we report that hypothalamic Pomc neurons in zebrafish and mice have long-range projections into spinal cord regions harboring Mc4r-expressing V2a interneurons, crucial components of the premotor networks. Furthermore, in zebrafish, Mc4r activation decreases the excitability of spinal V2a neurons as well as swimming and foraging, while systemic or V2a neuron-specific blockage of Mc4r promotes locomotion. In contrast, in mice, electrophysiological recordings revealed that t

SUBMITTER: Reinoß P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8847999 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature