title: Genetic Ablation of Type III Adenylyl Cyclase Exerts Region-Specific Effects on Cilia Architecture in the Mouse Nose.
abstract: We recently reported that olfactory sensory neurons in the dorsal zone of the mouse olfactory epithelium exhibit drastic location-dependent differences in cilia length. Furthermore, genetic ablation of type III adenylyl cyclase (ACIII), a key olfactory signaling protein and ubiquitous marker for primary cilia, disrupts the cilia length pattern and results in considerably shorter cilia, independent of odor-induced activity. Given the significant impact of ACIII on cilia length in the dorsal zone, we sought to further investigate the relationship between cilia length and ACIII level in various regions throughout the mouse olfactory epithelium. We employed whole-mount immunohistochemical staining to examine olfactory cilia morphology in phosphodiesterase (PDE) 1C-/-;PDE4A-/- (simplified as PDEs-/- hereafter) and ACIII-/- mice in which ACIII levels are reduced and ablated, respectively. As expected, PDEs-/- animals exhibit dramatically shorter cilia in the dorsal zone (i.e., where the cilia pattern is found), similar to our previous observation in ACIII-/- mice. Remarkably, in a region not included in our previous study, ACIII-/- animals (but not PDEs-/- mice) have dramatically elongated, comet-shaped cilia, as opposed to characteristic star-shaped olfactory cilia. Here, we reveal that genetic ablation of ACIII has drastic, location-dependent effects on cilia architecture in the mouse nose. These results add a new dimension to our current understanding of olfactory cilia structure and regional organization of the olfactory epithelium. Together, these findings have significant implications for both cilia and sensory biology.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States of America.
authors.forename: Rosemary C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Challis
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States of America.
authors.forename: Huikai
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States of America.|Department of Geriatrics, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, Shandong 250012, China.
authors.forename: Wenbin
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States of America.
authors.forename: Minghong
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ma
mesh_terms: D000262:Adenylyl Cyclases / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000235:genetics*; D000818:Animals; D002923:Cilia / Q000201:enzymology / Q000378:metabolism*; D017353:Gene Deletion; D051379:Mice; D009666:Nose / Q000166:cytology* / Q000201:enzymology; D009928:Organ Specificity; D010727:Phosphoric Diester Hydrolases / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D010727:Phosphoric Diester Hydrolases; D000262:Adenylyl Cyclases; C421784:adenylate cyclase 3