{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,30]],"date-time":"2026-04-30T23:24:06Z","timestamp":1777591446538,"version":"3.51.4"},"reference-count":45,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"6","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,5,31]],"date-time":"2023-05-31T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1685491200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Institutes of Health (NIH)","award":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"]}]},{"name":"National Institutes of Health (NIH)","award":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"]}]},{"name":"National Institutes of Health (NIH)","award":["DMR-2003849"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DMR-2003849"]}]},{"name":"National Institutes of Health (NIH)","award":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"]}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"National Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"National Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"National Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["DMR-2003849"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DMR-2003849"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"DOI":"10.13039\/100000001","name":"National Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","award":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/100000001","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"publisher"}]},{"name":"NIH","award":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NINDS\/NIA R03-NS118156"]}]},{"name":"NIH","award":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NCCIH R21-AT010933"]}]},{"name":"NIH","award":["DMR-2003849"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["DMR-2003849"]}]},{"name":"NIH","award":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["NIDDK F31-DK130583"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Biosensors"],"abstract":"<jats:p>The gut\u2013brain axis embodies the bi-directional communication between the gastrointestinal tract and the central nervous system (CNS), where vagal afferent neurons (VANs) serve as sensors for a variety of gut-derived signals. The gut is colonized by a large and diverse population of microorganisms that communicate via small (effector) molecules, which also act on the VAN terminals situated in the gut viscera and consequently influence many CNS processes. However, the convoluted in vivo environment makes it difficult to study the causative impact of the effector molecules on VAN activation or desensitization. Here, we report on a VAN culture and its proof-of-principle demonstration as a cell-based sensor to monitor the influence of gastrointestinal effector molecules on neuronal behavior. We initially compared the effect of surface coatings (poly-L-lysine vs. Matrigel) and culture media composition (serum vs. growth factor supplement) on neurite growth as a surrogate of VAN regeneration following tissue harvesting, where the Matrigel coating, but not the media composition, played a significant role in the increased neurite growth. We then used both live-cell calcium imaging and extracellular electrophysiological recordings to show that the VANs responded to classical effector molecules of endogenous and exogenous origin (cholecystokinin serotonin and capsaicin) in a complex fashion. We expect this study to enable platforms for screening various effector molecules and their influence on VAN activity, assessed by their information-rich electrophysiological fingerprints.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bios13060601","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,6,1]],"date-time":"2023-06-01T02:39:47Z","timestamp":1685587187000},"page":"601","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Cultured Vagal Afferent Neurons as Sensors for Intestinal Effector Molecules"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Gregory","family":"Girardi","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California\u2014Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Danielle","family":"Zumpano","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California\u2014Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3222-1022","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Noah","family":"Goshi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California\u2014Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Helen","family":"Raybould","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Cell Biology, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of California\u2014Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2401-3562","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Erkin","family":"Seker","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California\u2014Davis, Davis, CA 95616, USA"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,5,31]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"701","DOI":"10.1038\/nrn3346","article-title":"Mind-Altering Microorganisms: The Impact of the Gut Microbiota on Brain and Behaviour","volume":"13","author":"Cryan","year":"2012","journal-title":"Nat. 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