Road to vertebrates
We study ascidian CNS (central nervous system) as a simple model system to understand chordate brain development and function at single-cell resolution.
Ciona intestinalis Adult
Ciona intestinalis Larvae
Our main model is the ascidian, Ciona intestinalis.
The ascidians are the closest animal to the vertebrate.
I have a very simple CNS!
Anti-synaptotagmin antibody
The ascidian larva showed a tadpole-like shape and shared a basic body plan with vertebrates, including the dorsal tubular nervous system. The CNS of ascidian larvae contains about 350 cells, 177 cells of which are neurons, and the remaining are glial cells. Despite such simplicity, the CNS of ascidian larvae share several properties of the vertebrate brain.
Glutamatergic neurons Peptidergic neurons
GABA/ Glycine neurons Dopaminergic neurons
Pan-neuron Chorinergic neuron
Green ：each neuron marker
Magenda：nulcear
We study the simple CNS of the ascidian as a model system to understand chordate brain development and function at single-cell resolution.
