A unified rodent atlas reveals the cellular complexity and evolutionary divergence of the dorsal vagal complex

Abstract

The dorsal vagal complex (DVC) is a region in the brainstem comprised of an intricate network of specialized cells responsible for sensing and propagating many appetite-related cues. Understanding the dynamics controlling appetite requires deeply exploring the cell types and transitory states harbored in this brain site. We generated a multi-species DVC cell atlas using single nuclei RNAseq (sn-RNAseq), by curating and harmonizing mouse and rat data, which includes >180,000 cells and 123 cell identities at 5 granularities of cellular resolution. We report unique DVC features such as Kcnj3 expression in Ca+-permeable astrocytes as well as new cell populations like neurons co-expressing Th and Cck, and a leptin receptor-expressing neuron population in the rat area postrema which is marked by expression of the progenitor marker, Pdgfra. In summary, our findings demonstrate a high degree of complexity within the DVC and provide a valuable tool for the study of this metabolic center.