2. Academic Validation
  3. A Non-spinal Neural Circuit for Transmitting Information of Bladder Conditions

A Non-spinal Neural Circuit for Transmitting Information of Bladder Conditions

  • Neurosci Bull. 2025 Dec 27. doi: 10.1007/s12264-025-01570-6.
Zhenxiang Zhu # 1 2 3 4,  Zhuang Liu # 5,  Zan Wang 1 4,  Guangfu Cui 2 3,  Mei-Yu Shi 6 7,  Kunzhang Lin 2 3,  Yuxiang Qiu 8,  Tengxiao Si 1 4,  Peng Chen 2 3,  Qing Liu 2 3,  Guo-Qiang Bi 2 3 6 7,  Jie Wang 9,  Pengjie Wen 10 11,  Fuqiang Xu 12 13 14 15 16
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems, Wuhan Center for Magnetic Resonance, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430071, China.
  • 2 Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Viral Vectors for Biomedicine, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Drug Addiction, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
  • 3 Key Laboratory of Quality Control Technology for Virus-Based Therapeutics, CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, The Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China.
  • 4 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
  • 5 Department of Radiology, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Emotions and Affective Disorders, Songjiang Research Institute, Songjiang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200025, China.
  • 6 Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China.
  • 7 Anhui Province Key Laboratory of Biomedical Imaging and Intelligent Processing, Institute of Artificial Intelligence, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center, Hefei, 230088, Anhui, China.
  • 8 Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation (SMART), Shenzhen, 518107, China.
  • 9 Department of Radiology, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Emotions and Affective Disorders, Songjiang Research Institute, Songjiang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200025, China. [email protected].
  • 10 Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Viral Vectors for Biomedicine, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Drug Addiction, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China. [email protected].
  • 11 Key Laboratory of Quality Control Technology for Virus-Based Therapeutics, CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, The Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China. [email protected].
  • 12 State Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance and Atomic and Molecular Physics, Key Laboratory of Magnetic Resonance in Biological Systems, Wuhan Center for Magnetic Resonance, Innovation Academy for Precision Measurement Science and Technology, Wuhan, 430071, China. [email protected].
  • 13 Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Viral Vectors for Biomedicine, Shenzhen Key Laboratory of Drug Addiction, Shenzhen-Hong Kong Institute of Brain Science, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China. [email protected].
  • 14 Key Laboratory of Quality Control Technology for Virus-Based Therapeutics, CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Connectome and Manipulation, The Brain Cognition and Brain Disease Institute, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shenzhen, 518055, China. [email protected].
  • 15 University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China. [email protected].
  • 16 Faculty of Life and Health Sciences, Shenzhen University of Advanced Technology, Shenzhen, 518107, China. [email protected].
  • # Contributed equally.
PMID: 41455075 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-025-01570-6
Abstract

The bladder is essential for the body's fluid balance to ensure normal physiological conditions; thus, a non-pathological bladder-that is, one sustaining internal homeostasis-is critical for this function. However, the neuro-network maintaining the bladder's intrinsic homeostasis is much less well-known compared with that for urination. Here, we identified that vagal nodose ganglion-pseudounipolar neurons project down to the bladder, up to the nucleus of the solitary tract, and further to multiple brain regions. The components of this network and those revealed by direct tracing from the bladder with herpes simplex virus (HSV) have significant overlaps and differences. Chemogenetic activation coupled with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and c-Fos staining verified that the components in the vagal network were functionally connected. Strikingly, this vagal network did not include the primary motor cortex (M1), suggesting a role distinct from conscious urination control, and a cystitis model therefore revealed its potential role in transmitting bladder inflammation. Taken together, we have identified a non-spinal bladder-brain network not for urination but potentially for homeostasis of the bladder itself.

Keywords

Bladder; Cystitis; NTS; Nodose ganglion; Vagal sensory neuron.

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