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Pheromone detection mediated by a V1r vomeronasal receptor

Nature Neuroscience volume 5, pages 1261–1262 (2002)Cite this article

Abstract

In most mammals, intraspecies communication relies heavily on the vomeronasal system and its ability to detect pheromones1. Vomeronasal sensory neurons (VSNs) express G protein–coupled, seven-transmembrane receptors from either the V1r or V2r superfamilies2,3,4,5, which represent the only candidate pheromone receptors in mammals. Here, we show at the single-cell level that V1r receptors are involved in chemodetection and identify a specific receptor–agonist pair in the vomeronasal system.

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Figure 1: V1rb2-expressing VSNs respond to 2-heptanone.
Figure 2: 2-heptanone currents in V1rb2-expressing VSNs.
Figure 3: V1rb2 expression is required for response to 2-heptanone.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by grants from the Swiss National Science Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, 1005, Switzerland

    Corina Boschat, Coryse Pélofi, Olivier Randin & Marie-Christine Broillet

  2. Department of Zoology and Animal Biology, University of Geneva, Geneva, 1211, Switzerland

    Daniele Roppolo & Ivan Rodriguez

  3. Department of Physiology and Neurology, Pharmacology, University of Geneva, Geneva, 1211, Switzerland

    Christian Lüscher

Authors
  1. Corina Boschat
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  2. Coryse Pélofi
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  3. Olivier Randin
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  4. Daniele Roppolo
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  5. Christian Lüscher
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  6. Marie-Christine Broillet
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  7. Ivan Rodriguez
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Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Marie-Christine Broillet or Ivan Rodriguez.

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Supplementary information

41593_2002_BFnn978_MOESM1_ESM.pdf

Supplementary Fig. 1. (a, b) Visualization of neurons expressing the v1rb2 locus but not the V1rb2 receptor (DV line). Scale bar, 5 μm. (PDF 2562 kb)

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Boschat, C., Pélofi, C., Randin, O. et al. Pheromone detection mediated by a V1r vomeronasal receptor. Nat Neurosci 5, 1261–1262 (2002). https://doi.org/10.1038/nn978

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