PRDM12 Is Required for Initiation of the Nociceptive Neuron Lineage during Neurogenesis

Summary: The sensation of pain is essential for the preservation of the functional integrity of the body. However, the key molecular regulators necessary for the initiation of the development of pain-sensing neurons have remained largely unknown. Here, we report that, in mice, inactivation of the transcriptional regulator PRDM12, which is essential for pain perception in humans, results in a complete absence of the nociceptive lineage, while proprioceptive and touch-sensitive neurons remain. Mechanistically, our data reveal that PRDM12 is required for initiation of neurogenesis and activation of a cascade of downstream pro-neuronal transcription factors, including NEUROD1, BRN3A, and ISL1, in the nociceptive lineage while it represses alternative fates other than nociceptors in progenitor cells. Our results thus demonstrate that PRDM12 is necessary for the generation of the entire lineage of pain-initiating neurons. : The sensation of pain, temperature, and itch by neurons of the nociceptive lineage is essential for animal survival. Bartesaghi et al. report that the transcriptional regulator PRDM12 is indispensable in neural crest cells (NCCs) for the initiation of the sensory neuronal differentiation program that generates the entire nociceptive lineage. Keywords: neurogenesis, pain, nociceptive neurons, Prdm12, neural crest cell

Aux origines de la spiritualité orthodoxe : la seconde inauguration de Sainte-Sophie de Constantinople

Petitpré Robert, Peyras Jean. Aux origines de la spiritualité orthodoxe : la seconde inauguration de Sainte-Sophie de Constantinople. In: Histoire, espaces et marges de l'Antiquité : hommages à Monique Clavel-Lévêque. Tome 4. Besançon : Institut des Sciences et Techniques de l'Antiquité, 2005. pp. 51-92. (Collection « ISTA », 985

Aux origines de la spiritualité orthodoxe : la seconde inauguration de Sainte-Sophie de Constantinople

Petitpré Robert, Peyras Jean. Aux origines de la spiritualité orthodoxe : la seconde inauguration de Sainte-Sophie de Constantinople. In: Histoire, espaces et marges de l'Antiquité : hommages à Monique Clavel-Lévêque. Tome 4. Besançon : Institut des Sciences et Techniques de l'Antiquité, 2005. pp. 51-92. (Collection « ISTA », 985

Presynaptic physiology of cochlear inner hair cells

Sound based signal transduction happens at ribbon synapses between inner hair cells and spiral ganglion neurons in the cochlea. This chapter reviews the molecular anatomy and physiology of the presynaptic active zones of inner hair cells that are specialized to enable indefatigable glutamate release at high rates and utmost temporal precision