Spinal circuit regionalization diversifies motor output along the vertebrate body axis
Abstract
The evolution of the vertebrate limb-torso-limb body plan drove a diversification of motor behavior. How neural circuits are organized to generate distinct outputs across body regions, however, remains unknown. Here, we construct a cross-species, spatiotemporal atlas of spinal interneurons spanning the rostrocaudal and developmental axes of frogs and mice. We uncover a common framework of interneuron regionalization that mirrors each vertebrate's body plan and arises through Hox-dependent regulation of rostrocaudal neurogenesis. Combining electrophysiology with computational modeling, we show that changing regional circuit composition is sufficient to respecify motor output. Together, these findings establish a causal link between developmental patterning, circuit architecture, and motor function, identifying interneuron regionalization as a fundamental organizational principle linking body-plan evolution to motor diversity.
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BibTeX
@misc{papadopoulos2026spinal,
title = {{Spinal circuit regionalization diversifies motor output along the vertebrate body axis}},
author = {Stavros Papadopoulos and August Winther and Florina Alexandra Toma and Kareem Elassy and Clara Julseth and Remi Ronzano and Ying Zhang and Tim P Vogels and Didier Le Ray and Lora B Sweeney},
howpublished = {HAL},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.64898/2026.07.02.736051},
url = {https://hal.science/hal-05768706v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Spinal circuit regionalization diversifies motor output along the vertebrate body axis
AU - Stavros Papadopoulos
AU - August Winther
AU - Florina Alexandra Toma
AU - Kareem Elassy
AU - Clara Julseth
AU - Remi Ronzano
AU - Ying Zhang
AU - Tim P Vogels
AU - Didier Le Ray
AU - Lora B Sweeney
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/02
PB - HAL
DO - 10.64898/2026.07.02.736051
UR - https://hal.science/hal-05768706v1
AB - The evolution of the vertebrate limb-torso-limb body plan drove a diversification of motor behavior. How neural circuits are organized to generate distinct outputs across body regions, however, remains unknown. Here, we construct a cross-species, spatiotemporal atlas of spinal interneurons spanning the rostrocaudal and developmental axes of frogs and mice. We uncover a common framework of interneuron regionalization that mirrors each vertebrate's body plan and arises through Hox-dependent regulation of rostrocaudal neurogenesis. Combining electrophysiology with computational modeling, we show that changing regional circuit composition is sufficient to respecify motor output. Together, these findings establish a causal link between developmental patterning, circuit architecture, and motor function, identifying interneuron regionalization as a fundamental organizational principle linking body-plan evolution to motor diversity.
ER -