ArticleFrontiers in cell and developmental biology2022
Alternative neural systems: What is a neuron? (Ctenophores, sponges and placozoans).
Article in Frontiers in cell and developmental biology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 24 papers.
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Who cites it
24 citing papers in PubMed.
- Review
- The evolutionary origins of synaptic proteins and their changing roles in different organisms across evolution.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2026Review
- Early transitions in the evolution of cognition.History and philosophy of the life sciences · 2025Article
- A valuation based theory of learning's origin and development.Frontiers in systems neuroscience · 2025Article
- Mint/X11 PDZ domains from non-bilaterian animals recognize and bind CaScientific reports · 2024Article
- Conserved Genes in Highly Regenerative Metazoans Are Associated with Planarian Regeneration.Genome biology and evolution · 2024Article
- Long-Term Culturing of Placozoans (Trichoplax and Hoilungia).Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- The ancestral architecture of the immune system in simplest animals.Frontiers in immunology · 2024Article
- Brief History of Placozoa.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Review
- Analysis and Visualization of Single-Cell Sequencing Data with Scanpy and MetaCell: A Tutorial.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Parallel Evolution of Transcription Factors in Basal Metazoans.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Gap Junctions in Ctenophora.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Ctenophora: Illustrated Guide and Taxonomy.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Recording Cilia Activity in Ctenophores.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Brief History of Ctenophora.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Review
- Gene Expression Patterns in the Ctenophore Pleurobrachia bachei: In Situ Hybridization.Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) · 2024Article
- Chemical cognition: chemoconnectomics and convergent evolution of integrative systems in animals.Animal cognition · 2023Article
- Nitric oxide suppresses cilia activity in ctenophores.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2023Article
- Syncytial nets vs. chemical signaling: emerging properties of alternative integrative systems.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2023Article
- Recording cilia activity in ctenophores: effects of nitric oxide and low molecular weight transmitters.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2023Article
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2 authors.
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Abstract
How to make a neuron, a synapse, and a neural circuit? Is there only one 'design' for a neural architecture with a universally shared genomic blueprint across species? The brief answer is "No." Four early divergent lineages from the nerveless common ancestor of all animals independently evolved distinct neuroid-type integrative systems. One of these is a subset of neural nets in comb jellies with unique synapses; the second lineage is the well-known Cnidaria + Bilateria; the two others are non-synaptic neuroid systems in sponges and placozoans. By integrating scRNA-seq and microscopy data, we revise the definition of neurons as synaptically-coupled polarized and highly heterogenous secretory cells at the top of behavioral hierarchies with learning capabilities. This physiological (not phylogenetic) definition separates 'true' neurons from non-synaptically and gap junction-coupled integrative systems executing more stereotyped behaviors. Growing evidence supports the hypothesis of multiple origins of neurons and synapses. Thus, many non-bilaterian and bilaterian neuronal classes, circuits or systems are considered functional rather than genetic categories, composed of non-homologous cell types. In summary, little-explored examples of convergent neuronal evolution in representatives of early branching metazoans provide conceptually novel microanatomical and physiological architectures of behavioral controls in animals with prospects of neuro-engineering and synthetic biology.
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