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In the spinal cord, classes of interneurons have been studied in vitro to determine their role in producing or regulating locomotion. It is unclear whether all locomotor behaviors are produced by the same circuitry or engage different subsets of neurons. Here, in neonatal mice of either sex, we test this idea by comparing the actions of a class of spinal, inhibitory interneuron (V1) expressing channelrhodopsin driven by the engrailed-1 transcription factor on the rhythms elicited by different methods. We find that, although the overall locomotor activities in vitro are similar, V1 interneuron depolarization produces opposite effects depending of the mode of activation of the locomotor circuitry. The differential behavior of V1 neurons suggests that their function depends on how the locomotor rhythm is activated and is consistent with the idea that the functional organization of the corresponding locomotor networks also differs. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The neural networks dictating the execution of fictive locomotion are located in the spinal cord. It is generally assumed that the mode of activation of these spinal networks should not change the recruitment or function of neurons. Here, we manipulated the activity of a class of interneuron (V1), which targets these networks and found that their activation induces opposite effects depending on the mode of activation. This suggests that the mode of activation of the spinal networks differentially recruits either V1 interneurons or other interneurons, or both., (Copyright © 2021 the authors.)

We investigated dye-coupling between motoneurons in the L6 segment of the neonatal mouse spinal cord that contains limb-innervating motoneurons and sexually dimorphic motor nuclei. Using an isolated spinal cord preparation, we back-filled the cut, L6 ventral root with the small molecule Neurobiotin, or the much larger dextran-conjugated fluorophores for 16-24 hours. Motoneurons and parasympathetic preganglionic neurons were filled with both markers, but dye-coupling was only seen with Neurobiotin fills. Following a neurobiotin fill, fluorescence was observed in contralateral motoneurons, in motoneurons innervating adjacent ventral roots, and in ChAT-negative, putative interneurons outside of the motoneuron pools in addition to the directly back-labeled L6 motoneurons. It is known that the gap junction protein connexin-36 is widely expressed in the sexually dimorphic motoneurons of the L6 segment, suggesting that the dye-coupling is mediated by gap junctions. The technique has revealed previously unknown connections of motoneurons in the neonatal mouse cord that are likely to play important roles in the development and function of spinal circuits.

Dysfunction in sensorimotor synapses is one of the earliest pathological changes observed in a mouse model [spinal muscular atrophy (SMA)Δ7] of spinal muscular atrophy. Here, we examined the density of proprioceptive and cholinergic synapses on calbindin-immunoreactive interneurons ventral to the lateral motor column. This population includes inhibitory Renshaw interneurons that are known to receive synaptic input from muscle spindle afferents and from motoneurons. At postnatal day (P)13, near the end stage of the disease, the somatic area of calbindin(+) neurons in the L1/L2 and L5/L6 segments was reduced in SMAΔ7 mice compared with controls. In addition, the number and density of terminals expressing the glutamate vesicular transporter (VGLUT1) and the vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT) were increased on calbindin(+) cells in the L1-L2 but not in the L5-L6 segments of SMAΔ7 mice. In addition, the isolated spinal cord of SMA mice was able to generate locomotor-like activity at P4-P6 in the presence of a drug cocktail or in response to dorsal root stimulation. These results argue against a generalized loss of proprioceptive input to spinal circuits in SMA and suggest that the loss of proprioceptive synapses on motoneurons may be secondary to motoneuron pathology. The increased number of VGLUT1(+) and VAChT(+) synapses on calbindin(+) neurons in the L1/L2 segments may be the result of homeostatic mechanisms. Finally, we have shown that abnormal locomotor network function is unlikely to account for the motor deficits observed in SMA mice at P4-6.

Identification of the neural pathways involved in retraining the spinal central pattern generators (CPGs) by afferent input in the absence of descending supraspinal control is feasible in isolated rodent spinal cords where the locomotor CPGs are potently activated by sacrocaudal afferent (SCA) input. Here we study the involvement of sacral neurons projecting rostrally through the ventral funiculi (VF) in activation of the CPGs by sensory stimulation. Fluorescent labeling and immunostaining showed that VF neurons are innervated by primary afferents immunoreactive for vesicular glutamate transporters 1 and 2 and by intraspinal neurons. Calcium imaging revealed that 55% of the VF neurons were activated by SCA stimulation. The activity of VF neurons and the sacral and lumbar CPGs was abolished when non-NMDA receptors in the sacral segments were blocked by the antagonist CNQX. When sacral NMDA receptors were blocked by APV, the sacral CPGs were suppressed, VF neurons with nonrhythmic activity were recruited and a moderate-drive locomotor rhythm developed during SCA stimulation. In contrast, when the sacral CPGs were activated by SCA stimulation, rhythmic and nonrhythmic VF neurons were recruited and the locomotor rhythm was most powerful. The activity of 73 and 27% of the rhythmic VF neurons was in-phase with the ipsilateral and contralateral motor output, respectively. Collectively, our studies indicate that sacral VF neurons serve as a major link between SCA and the hindlimb CPGs and that the ability of SCA to induce stepping can be enhanced by the sacral CPGs. The nature of the ascending drive to lumbar CPGs, the identity of subpopulations of VF neurons, and their potential role in activating the locomotor rhythm are discussed.

In the mouse spinal cord, V1 interneurons are a heterogeneous population of inhibitory spinal interneurons that have been implicated in regulating the frequency of the locomotor rhythm and in organizing flexor and extensor alternation. By introducing archaerhodopsin into engrailed-1-positive neurons, we demonstrate that the function of V1 neurons in locomotor-like activity is more complex than previously thought. In the whole cord, V1 hyperpolarization increased the rhythmic synaptic drive to flexor and extensor motoneurons, increased the spiking in each cycle, and slowed the locomotor-like rhythm. In the hemicord, V1 hyperpolarization accelerated the rhythm after an initial period of tonic activity, implying that a subset of V1 neurons are active in the hemicord, which was confirmed by calcium imaging. Hyperpolarizing V1 neurons resulted in an equalization of the duty cycle in flexor and extensors from an asymmetrical pattern in control recordings in which the extensor bursts were longer than the flexor bursts. Our results suggest that V1 interneurons are composed of several subsets with different functional roles. Furthermore, during V1 hyperpolarization, the default state of the locomotor central pattern generator (CPG) is symmetrical, with antagonist motoneurons each firing with an approximately 50% duty cycle. We hypothesize that one function of the V1 population is to set the burst durations of muscles to be appropriate to their biomechanical function and to adapt to the environmental demands, such as changes in locomotor speed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The mechanisms that diversify adult interneurons from a few pools of embryonic neurons are unknown. Renshaw cells, Ia inhibitory interneurons (IaINs), and possibly other types of mammalian spinal interneurons have common embryonic origins within the V1 group. However, in contrast to IaINs and other V1-derived interneurons, adult Renshaw cells receive motor axon synapses and lack proprioceptive inputs. Here, we investigated how this specific pattern of connectivity emerges during the development of Renshaw cells. Tract tracing and immunocytochemical markers [parvalbumin and vesicular glutamate transporter 1 (VGLUT1)] showed that most embryonic (embryonic day 18) Renshaw cells lack dorsal root inputs, but more than half received dorsal root synapses by postnatal day 0 (P0) and this input spread to all Renshaw cells by P10-P15. Electrophysiological recordings in neonates indicated that this input is functional and evokes Renshaw cell firing. VGLUT1-IR bouton density on Renshaw cells increased until P15 but thereafter decreased because of limited synapse proliferation coupled with the enlargement of Renshaw cell dendrites. In parallel, Renshaw cell postsynaptic densities apposed to VGLUT1-IR synapses became smaller in adult compared with P15. In contrast, vesicular acetylcholine transporter-IR motor axon synapses contact embryonic Renshaw cells and proliferate postnatally matching Renshaw cell growth. Like other V1 neurons, Renshaw cells are thus competent to receive sensory synapses. However, after P15, these sensory inputs appear deselected through arrested proliferation and synapse weakening. Thus, Renshaw cells shift from integrating sensory and motor inputs in neonates to predominantly motor inputs in adult. Similar synaptic weight shifts on interneurons may be involved in the maturation of motor reflexes and locomotor circuitry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: We have used calcium imaging to visualize the spatiotemporal organization of activity generated by in vitro spinal cord preparations of the developing chick embryo and the neonatal mouse. During each episode of spontaneous activity, we found that chick spinal neurons were activated rhythmically and synchronously throughout the transverse extent of the spinal cord. At the onset of a spontaneous episode, optical activity originated in the ventrolateral part of the cord. Back-labeling of spinal interneurons with calcium dyes suggested that this ventrolateral initiation was mediated by activation of a class of interneurons, located dorsomedial to the motor nucleus, that receive direct monosynaptic input from motoneurons. Studies of locomotor-like activity in the anterior lumbar segments of the neonatal mouse cord revealed the existence of a rostrocaudal wave in the oscillatory component of each cycle of rhythmic motoneuron activity. This finding raises the possibility that the activation of mammalian motoneurons during locomotion may share some of the same rostrocaudally organized mechanisms that evolved to control swimming in fishes. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]