Cell Reports
Volume 33, Issue 7, 17 November 2020, 108382
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Gbx2 Identifies Two Amacrine Cell Subtypes with Distinct Molecular, Morphological, and Physiological Properties

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108382Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Gbx2 identifies two amacrine cell interneurons in the mouse retina

  • The Gbx2+ subtypes are molecularly, morphologically, and physiologically distinct

  • One Gbx2+ subtype lacks classical neurotransmitters but has electrical synapses

Summary

Our understanding of nervous system function is limited by our ability to identify and manipulate neuronal subtypes within intact circuits. We show that the Gbx2CreERT2-IRES-EGFP mouse line labels two amacrine cell (AC) subtypes in the mouse retina that have distinct morphological, physiological, and molecular properties. Using a combination of RNA-seq, genetic labeling, and patch clamp recordings, we show that one subtype is GABAergic that receives excitatory input from On bipolar cells. The other population is a non-GABAergic, non-glycinergic (nGnG) AC subtype that lacks the expression of standard neurotransmitter markers. Gbx2+ nGnG ACs have smaller, asymmetric dendritic arbors that receive excitatory input from both On and Off bipolar cells. Gbx2+ nGnG ACs also exhibit spatially restricted tracer coupling to bipolar cells (BCs) through gap junctions. This study identifies a genetic tool for investigating the two distinct AC subtypes, and it provides a model for studying synaptic communication and visual circuit function.

Keywords

electrical synapses
vision
neural circuit
neuronal identity
amacrine
retina

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