Neuronal segmentation in cephalopod arms

Neuronal segmentation in cephalopod arms | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Biological Sciences - Article Neuronal segmentation in cephalopod arms Cassady Olson, Natalie Schulz, Clifton Ragsdale This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-4548192/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 15 Jan, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The prehensile arms of the cephalopod are among these animals' most remarkable features, but little is known about the neural circuitry governing arm and sucker movements 1,2 . Here, we investigated the cellular and molecular organization of the arm nervous system, focusing on the massive axial nerve cords (ANCs) in the octopus arms which collectively harbor four times as many neurons as the central brain 3 . We found that the ANC is segmented. In transverse cross sections, the ANC cell body layer wraps around the neuropil with no apparent segregation of sensory and motor neurons. In longitudinal sections, however, ANC neurons form segments, setting up a modular organization to the adjoining ANC neuropil. The septa between each segment are, in contrast, neuron-poor but contain nerve exits, vasculature and abundant collagen. Surprisingly, nerves exiting from neighboring septa differ in their fiber trajectories indicating that multiple adjoining segments must cooperate to innervate the arm musculature fully. The nerves for each sucker also exit through septa and set up a spatial “suckerotopy” in the ANC. A strong link between ANC segmentation and flexible sucker-laden arms was confirmed by comparative study of squid arms and tentacles. The ANC segmental modules represent a new template for understanding the motor control of octopus soft tissues. They also provide the first example of nervous system segmentation in a mollusc 4 . Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Neural circuits Biological sciences/Evolution/Evolutionary developmental biology Biological sciences/Neuroscience/Motor control Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementalVideo1.mp4 Supplemental Video 1 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 15 Jan, 2025 Read the published version in Nature Communications → Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-4548192","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Biological Sciences - Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":314261533,"identity":"a2d70f79-2474-4784-a7e6-37cc44d641bb","order_by":0,"name":"Cassady Olson","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA3klEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACdgglx8DAw3AAKmaAXwszhDImXUtiA1ALDODXws/M/vBxQU1d+objZw8e+FFTK8fA3rxNAp8WyWYeY+MZxw7nbjiTl3Cw59hxYwaeY2V4tRgc5mGT5m04kLvhBo/BYQa2Y4kNEjlmBLSwPwNqqUs3AGv5B9Qi/4aQFgYzoBbmBLAWxrYaoC08+LWA/cJz7LDhzDM5Bgd7+w4Ys/GkFVvg08LP3v7wMU9NnTzf8TPGH358q5PjZz+88QY+LegAGAKkKAeBOlI1jIJRMApGwQgAAGjrRciRKT3HAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"The University of Chicago","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Cassady","middleName":"","lastName":"Olson","suffix":""},{"id":314261534,"identity":"c5d2312a-8a4a-4c29-8e3a-210295932fa5","order_by":1,"name":"Natalie Schulz","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"The University of Chicago","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Natalie","middleName":"","lastName":"Schulz","suffix":""},{"id":314261535,"identity":"2dcd010d-748f-4167-9c51-258624133210","order_by":2,"name":"Clifton Ragsdale","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"The University of Chicago","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Clifton","middleName":"","lastName":"Ragsdale","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2024-06-07 22:10:15","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":"","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4548192/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4548192/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[{"content":"https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-55475-5","type":"published","date":"2025-01-15T05:00:00+00:00"}],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":73941577,"identity":"c8e61a32-522c-4b2b-9710-aca363bf4628","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-01-16 08:05:59","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":3340034,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Article File","description":"","filename":"OlsonSchulzRagsdaleNeuralSegNature06072024.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4548192/v1_covered_8d39bcac-3ca9-4ff3-9529-a4a562b73267.pdf"},{"id":59628784,"identity":"bbfecefd-1f68-4c56-8dbc-5a77dce7116b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2024-07-04 04:37:15","extension":"mp4","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"supplement","size":60928356,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"Supplemental Video 1","description":"","filename":"SupplementalVideo1.mp4","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-4548192/v1/cfd7fcbd046d11c9536505ac.mp4"}],"financialInterests":"There is \u003cb\u003eNO\u003c/b\u003e Competing Interest.","formattedTitle":"Neuronal segmentation in cephalopod arms","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":false,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":true,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":false,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"nature-portfolio","isNatureJournal":true,"hasQc":false,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"","title":"Nature Portfolio","twitterHandle":"","acdcEnabled":false,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"ejp","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":true,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":false},"keywords":"","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-4548192/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4548192/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"The prehensile arms of the cephalopod are among these animals' most remarkable features, but little is known about the neural circuitry governing arm and sucker movements\u003csup\u003e1,2\u003c/sup\u003e. 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