Martinotti cells are small multipolar neurons with short branching dendrites. They are scattered throughout various layers of the cerebral cortex, sending their axons up to the cortical layer I where they form axonal arborization. The arbors transgress multiple columns in layer VI and make contacts with the distal tuft dendrites of pyramidal cells.[1] Martinotti cells express somatostatin and sometimes calbindin, but not parvalbumin or vasoactive intestinal peptide.[2] Furthermore, Martinotti cells in layer V have been shown to express the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor α2 subunit (Chrna2).[3]

Martinotti cell
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NeuroLex IDnifext_55
Anatomical terms of neuroanatomy

Martinotti cells are associated with a cortical dampening mechanism.[4] When the pyramidal neuron, which is the most common type of neuron in the cortex, starts getting overexcited, Martinotti cells start sending inhibitory signals to the surrounding neurons. [5]

Historically, the discovery of Martinotti cells has been mistakenly attributed to Giovanni Martinotti 1888, although it is now accepted that they were actually discovered in 1889 by Carlo Martinotti (1859–1908), a student of Camillo Golgi.[6]

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List of distinct cell types in the adult human body

References edit

  1. ^ Wang Y, Toledo-Rodriguez M, Gupta A, et al. (November 2004). "Anatomical, physiological and molecular properties of Martinotti cells in the somatosensory cortex of the juvenile rat". J. Physiol. 561 (Pt 1): 65–90. doi:10.1113/jphysiol.2004.073353. PMC 1665344. PMID 15331670.
  2. ^ Sugino K, Hempel CM, Miller MN, et al. (January 2006). "Molecular taxonomy of major neuronal classes in the adult mouse forebrain". Nat. Neurosci. 9 (1): 99–107. doi:10.1038/nn1618. PMID 16369481. S2CID 27815855.
  3. ^ Hilscher, Markus M.; Leão, Richardson N.; Edwards, Steven J.; Leão, Katarina E.; Kullander, Klas (2017-02-09). "Chrna2-Martinotti Cells Synchronize Layer 5 Type A Pyramidal Cells via Rebound Excitation". PLOS Biology. 15 (2): e2001392. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.2001392. ISSN 1545-7885. PMC 5300109. PMID 28182735.
  4. ^ Riedemann, T (17 June 2019). "Diversity and Function of Somatostatin-Expressing Interneurons in the Cerebral Cortex". International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 20 (12): 2952. doi:10.3390/ijms20122952. PMC 6627222. PMID 31212931.
  5. ^ Silberberg G, Markram H (March 2007). "Disynaptic inhibition between neocortical pyramidal cells mediated by Martinotti cells". Neuron. 53 (5): 735–46. doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2007.02.012. PMID 17329212. S2CID 15624023.
  6. ^ Martinotti C (1889). "Contributo allo studio della corteccia cerebrale, ed all'origine centrale dei nervi". Ann. Freniatr. Sci. Affini. 1: 14–381.