Pronounced Strain-Specific Chemosensory Receptor Gene Expression in the Mouse Vomeronasal Organ
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus
PROVIDER: GSE99684 | GEO | 2017/12/05
SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA389296
REPOSITORIES: GEO
Similar Datasets
Project description:BACKGROUND:The chemosensory system plays an important role in orchestrating sexual behaviors in mammals. Pheromones trigger sexually dimorphic behaviors and different mouse strains exhibit differential responses to pheromone stimuli. It has been speculated that differential gene expression in the sensory organs that detect pheromones may underlie sexually-dimorphic and strain-specific responses to pheromone cues. RESULTS:We have performed transcriptome analyses of the mouse vomeronasal organ, a sensory organ recognizing pheromones and interspecies cues. We find little evidence of sexual dimorphism in gene expression except for Xist, an essential gene for X-linked gene inactivation. Variations in gene expression are found mainly among strains, with genes from immune response and chemosensory receptor classes dominating the list. Differentially expressed genes are concentrated in genomic hotspots enriched in these families of genes. Some chemosensory receptors show exclusive patterns of expression in different strains. We find high levels of single nucleotide polymorphism in chemosensory receptor pseudogenes, some of which lead to functionalized receptors. Moreover, we identify a number of differentially expressed long noncoding RNA species showing strong correlation or anti-correlation with chemoreceptor genes. CONCLUSIONS:Our analyses provide little evidence supporting sexually dimorphic gene expression in the vomeronasal organ that may underlie dimorphic pheromone responses. In contrast, we find pronounced variations in the expression of immune response related genes, vomeronasal and G-protein coupled receptor genes among different mouse strains. These findings raised the possibility that diverse strains of mouse perceive pheromone cues differently and behavioral difference among strains in response to pheromone may first arise from differential detection of pheromones. On the other hand, sexually dimorphic responses to pheromones more likely originate from dimorphic neural circuits in the brain than from differential detection. Moreover, noncoding RNA may offer a potential regulatory mechanism controlling the differential expression patterns.
| S-EPMC5727874 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The vomeronasal organ of mice consists of two major types of vomeronasal sensory neurons (VSNs) expressing either receptors of the V1R or V2R family. V1R and V2R VSNs form from a common pool of progenitors but have distinct differentiation programs. We analyzed single cell RNA sequencing data of adult VNO and identified differential expression of Notch1 receptor and Dll4 ligand among the neuronal precursors at the VSN dichotomy. We further demonstrated that Notch signaling is required for effective differentiation of V2R+ basal VSNs.
2022-06-06 | GSE190330 | GEO
Project description:Rodents perceive pheromones via vomeronasal receptors encoded by the Vr and Fpr gene superfamilies. The evolution of these latter is exceptionally dynamic. We report here that high numbers of V1r pseudogenes are scattered in mammalian genomes, contrasting with the clustered organization of functional V1r and Fpr genes. We also found that V1r pseudogenes are more likely to be expressed when located in a functional V1r gene cluster than when isolated. To explore the potential regulatory role played by the association of functional vomeronasal receptor genes with their clusters, we dissociated the mouse Fpr-rs3 from its native cluster via transgenesis. Singular and specific transgenic Fpr-rs3 transcription was observed in young vomeronasal neurons, but was only transient. Our data point to the existence of transcription stabilizing elements not coupled to vomeronasal gene units but rather associated with vomeronasal gene clusters, and thus explain the evolutionary conserved clustered organization of functional vomeronasal genes.
2022-10-02 | GSE190612 | GEO
Project description:Rodents perceive pheromones via vomeronasal receptors encoded by the Vr and Fpr gene superfamilies. The evolution of these latter is exceptionally dynamic. We report here that high numbers of V1r pseudogenes are scattered in mammalian genomes, contrasting with the clustered organization of functional V1r and Fpr genes. We also found that V1r pseudogenes are more likely to be expressed when located in a functional V1r gene cluster than when isolated. To explore the potential regulatory role played by the association of functional vomeronasal receptor genes with their clusters, we dissociated the mouse Fpr-rs3 from its native cluster via transgenesis. Singular and specific transgenic Fpr-rs3 transcription was observed in young vomeronasal neurons, but was only transient. Our data point to the existence of transcription stabilizing elements not coupled to vomeronasal gene units but rather associated with vomeronasal gene clusters, and thus explain the evolutionary conserved clustered organization of functional vomeronasal genes.
2022-10-02 | GSE190611 | GEO
Project description:Rodents perceive pheromones via vomeronasal receptors encoded by the Vr and Fpr gene superfamilies. The evolution of these latter is exceptionally dynamic. We report here that high numbers of V1r pseudogenes are scattered in mammalian genomes, contrasting with the clustered organization of functional V1r and Fpr genes. We also found that V1r pseudogenes are more likely to be expressed when located in a functional V1r gene cluster than when isolated. To explore the potential regulatory role played by the association of functional vomeronasal receptor genes with their clusters, we dissociated the mouse Fpr-rs3 from its native cluster via transgenesis. Singular and specific transgenic Fpr-rs3 transcription was observed in young vomeronasal neurons, but was only transient. Our data point to the existence of transcription stabilizing elements not coupled to vomeronasal gene units but rather associated with vomeronasal gene clusters, and thus explain the evolutionary conserved clustered organization of functional vomeronasal genes.
2022-10-02 | GSE193024 | GEO
Project description:The Vomeronasal organ (VNO) is a part of the accessory olfactory system, which is responsible for detecting pheromones, chemical factors that trigger a spectrum of sexual and social behaviors. The vomeronasal epithelium (VNE) shares several features with the epithelium of the main olfactory epithelium (MOE). However, it is a distinct neuroepithelium populated by chemosensory neurons that differ from the olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) in cellular structure, receptor expression, and connectivity. The vomeronasal organ of rodents comprises a sensory epithelium and a thin nonsensory epithelium that morphologically resembles the respiratory epithelium. Sox2-positive cells have been previously identified as the stem cell population that gives rise to neuronal progenitors in MOE and VNE. In addition to these, the MOE also comprises p63 positive horizontal basal cells (HBCs), a second pool of quiescent stem cells that become active in response to injury. Immunolabeling against the transcription factor p63, Keratin-5 (Krt5), Krt14 and Krt5Cre tracing experiments highlighted the existence of horizontal basal cells distributed along the basal lamina of the VNO forming from progenitors along the basal lamina oft the marginal zones. Moreover, these experiments revealed that the NSE of rodents is, like the respiratory epithelium, a stratified epithelium where the p63/Krt5+ basal cells self-replicate and give rise to the apical columnar cells facing the lumen of the VNO.
2024-03-11 | GSE247872 | GEO
Project description:We have generated single cell transcriptomic atlases of vomeronasal organs (VNO) from juvenile and adult mice. Combined with spatial molecular imaging, we uncover a distinct, previously unidentified class of cells that express the vomeronasal receptors and a population of canonical olfactory sensory neurons in the VNO. High resolution trajectory and cluster analyses reveal the lineage relationship, spatial distribution of cell types, and a putative cascade of molecular events that specify the V1r, V2r, and OR lineages from a common stem cell population. The expression of vomeronasal and olfactory receptors follow power law distributions, but there are high variabilities in average expression levels between individual receptor and cell types. Substantial co-expression is found between receptors across clades, from different classes, and between olfactory and vomeronasal receptors, with nearly half from pairs located on the same chromosome. Interestingly, the expression of V2r, but not V1r, genes is associated with various transcription factors, suggesting distinct mechanisms of receptor choice associated with the two cell types. We identify association between transcription factors, surface axon guidance molecules, and individual VRs, thereby uncovering a molecular code that guides the specification of the vomeronasal circuitry. Our study provides a wealth of data on the development and organization of the accessory olfactory system at both cellular and molecular levels to enable a deeper understanding of vomeronasal system function.
2024-02-29 | GSE252365 | GEO
Project description:<1. The vomeronasal organ (VNO) in the nose of most tetrapods is a sensory structure for the detection of pheromones and kairomones (intra-specific and inter-specific chemical signals) that initiate innate behaviours. It has two neuronal layers, each expressing distinct receptor sub-families coupled to different G-proteins. Neurones in the apical layer express a single vomeronasal receptor type 1 and the G?i2 G-protein. On the other hand, neurons in the basal layer express two or more vomeronasal receptors type-2 (V2Rs) and the G?o G-protein. In mice, V2Rs are organized into four families, A, B, D and C, with family-A and -C sub-divided into subfamilies A1-A10 and C1-C2. These gene families are expressed in a unique combinatorial pattern. Families A (subfamilies A1-A6), B and D are expressed monogenically and coexpress with the recently expanded family-C2 (6 genes, Vmn2r2 to Vmn2r7). While neurons expressing the phylogenetically ancient subfamily-C2 (1 gene, Vmn2r1) coexpress with family-BD and subfamilies A8-A10.We have generated a knock-out mouse for gene Vmn2r1 gene, using a Eucomm tm1b allele. This mouse is a valuable resource for further understanding the molecular organization of the VNO and its behavioural implications, in an evolutionary context. We propose here, to sequence the VNO of Vmn2r1 mutant mice. By studying the VNO transcriptome we hope to advance our knowledge of the genetic coding of pheromonal communication. This data is part of a pre-publication release. For information on the proper use of pre-publication data shared by the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute (including details of any publication moratoria), please see http://www.sanger.ac.uk/datasharing/
2015-10-20 | E-ERAD-402 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Neuronal identity dictates the position in an epithelium, and the ability to detect, process, and transmit specific signals to specified targets. Traditionally, transcription factors (TFs) determine cellular identity via direct modulation of genetic transcription and recruiting chromatin modifiers. However, our understanding of the mechanisms that define neuronal identity and their magnitude remains a critical barrier to elucidate the etiology of congenital and neurodegenerative disorders. The structure of the rodent vomeronasal organ provides a unique system to examine in detail the molecular mechanisms underlying the differentiation and maturation of chemosensory neurons (VSNs). Here we demonstrated that the identity of postmitotic/maturing VSNs and vomeronasal dependent behaviors can be reprogrammed through the rescue of AP-2e expression in the AP-2eNull mice and by inducing ectopic AP-2e expression in mature apical VSNs. Our data suggest that the transcription factor AP-2e directly controls the expression of batteries of vomeronasal genes.
2022-06-06 | GSE192746 | GEO
Project description:The identification of receptors that detect environmental stimuli lays a foundation for exploring the mechanisms and neural circuits underlying sensation. The mouse vomeronasal organ (VNO), which detects pheromones and other semiochemicals, has 2 known families of chemoreceptors, V1Rs and V2Rs. Here, we report a third family of mouse VNO receptors comprising 5 of 7 members of the formyl peptide receptor (FPR) family. Unlike other FPRs, which function in the immune system, these FPRs are selectively expressed in VNO neurons in patterns strikingly similar to those of V1Rs and V2Rs. Each FPR is expressed in a different small subset of neurons that are highly dispersed in the neuroepithelium, consistently coexpress either G alpha(i2) or G alpha(o), and lack other chemoreceptors examined. Given the presence of formylated peptides in bacteria and mitochondria, possible roles for VNO FPRs include the assessment of conspecifics or other species based on variations in normal bacterial flora or mitochondrial proteins.
| S-EPMC2690606 | biostudies-literature