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Journal of Experimental Biology, Vol 201, Issue 21 2981-2992, Copyright © 1998 by Company of Biologists

JOURNAL ARTICLES

Steroid-regulated morphological plasticity in a set of identified peptidergic neurons in the moth Manduca sexta

H. W. Mcgraw, KRS. Prier, J. C. Wiley and N. J. Tublitz

The lateral neurosecretory cells (LNCs) in the tobacco hornworm Manduca sexta undergo a switch in neurotransmitter phenotype during pupation. Concurrent with this change in function, the LNCs undergo a major morphological reorganization. This study characterizes the morphological change and its underlying cause. In the larva, the LNC has a very compact dendritic arborization in a small volume of neuropil ipsilateral to the cell soma. In the adult moth, the LNC arborization extends through a much larger volume of neuropil, including the contralateral side of the ganglion. Using both in vivo manipulations and a single-cell culture system, we show that this change in morphology is probably triggered by two pulses of the steroid hormone 20-hydroxyecdysone (20-HE): a small commitment peak and a larger prepupal pulse. These are the same two pulses of 20-HE as those previously shown jointly to cause the change in transmitter phenotype. This work, in conjunction with a previous study on the transmitter switch, documents the orchestration of major morphological and biochemical changes in a set of identified neurons by a single hormone.




© The Company of Biologists Ltd 1998