Sexual Dimorphism of Spinal Neural Circuits Controlling the Mouse External Urethral Sphincter With and Without Spinal Cord Injury.
J Comp Neurol
; 532(7): e25658, 2024 Jul.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-38987904
ABSTRACT
Spinal cord injury (SCI) disrupts coordination between the bladder and the external urinary sphincter (EUS), leading to transient or permanent voiding impairment, which is more severe in males. Male versus female differences in spinal circuits related to the EUS as well as post-SCI rewiring are essential for understanding of sex-/gender-specific impairments and possible recovery mechanisms. To quantitatively assess differences between EUS circuits in males versus females and in spinal intact (SI) versus SCI animals, we retrogradely traced and counted EUS-related neurons. In transgenic ChAT-GFP mice, motoneurons (MNs), interneurons (INs), and propriospinal neurons (PPNs) were retrogradely trans-synaptically traced with PRV614-red fluorescent protein (RFP) injected into EUS. EUS-MNs in dorsolateral nucleus (DLN) were separated from other GFP+ MNs by tracing them with FluoroGold (FG). We found two morphologically distinct cell types in DLN FG+ spindle-shaped bipolar (SB-MNs) and FG- rounded multipolar (RM-MNs) cholinergic cells. Number of MNs of both types in males was twice as large as in females. SCI caused a partial loss of MNs in all spinal nuclei. After SCI, males showed a fourfold rise in the number of RFP-labeled cells in retro-DLN (RDLN) innervating hind limbs. This suggests (a) an existence of direct synaptic interactions between spinal nuclei and (b) a post-SCI increase of non-specific inputs to EUS-MNs from other motor nuclei. Number of INs and PPNs deferred between males and females In SI males, the numbers of INs and PPNs were â¼10 times larger than in SI females. SCI caused a twofold decrease of INs and PPNs in males but not in females.
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01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Traumatismos da Medula Espinal
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Uretra
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Camundongos Transgênicos
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Caracteres Sexuais
Limite:
Animals
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Comp Neurol
Ano de publicação:
2024
Tipo de documento:
Article