The development of vestibulo-ocular circuitry in the chicken embryo

Abstract

This article reviews studies of the organization and development of the vestibulo-ocular reflex arc in the chicken embryo. It summarizes some of the principal features that characterize the development of this circuit, including the gradual clustering of motoneurons in the oculomotor nucleus into functionally identifiable motoneuron pools, the patterning of vestibular projection neurons into coherent clusters with specific axonal trajectories and terminations onto the oculomotor motoneuron pools, the reverse order of synapse formation during development (motoneuron to muscle, then vestibular projection neuron to motoneuron), and the selectivity of initial synaptic termination at both the ultimate and penultimate relays within the reflex arc. Reference to studies in other vertebrate species is made to provide a comparative context, and potential mechanisms are discussed that may contribute to the underlying synaptic specificity in this circuit.