In this episode, Jia Liu and Bin Feng highlight the recently published research titled "Morphological, molecular, and functional characterization of mouse glutamatergic myenteric neurons." In this research, the authors reveal that VGLUT2-positive enteric neurons (EN), although constituting a small fraction of total EN, are homogeneously expressed in the myenteric ganglia, with a slight concentration at the intermediate region between the colon and rectum. Through anatomic, molecular, and functional analyses, we demonstrated that VGLUT2-ENs are activated indirectly by noxious circumferential colorectal stretch via nicotinic cholinergic transmission, suggesting their participation in mechanical visceral nociception.
Article Citation:
American Journal of Physiology-Gastrointestinal and Liver Physiology 2024 326:3, G279-G290
