Marín O et al. (1997), Distribution of choline acetyltransferase immun...

XB-ART-16359

J Comp Neurol 1997 Jun 16;3824:499-534. doi: 10.1002/(sici)1096-9861(19970616)382:4<499::aid-cne6>3.0.co;2-y.

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Distribution of choline acetyltransferase immunoreactivity in the brain of anuran (Rana perezi, Xenopus laevis) and urodele (Pleurodeles waltl) amphibians.

Marín O , Smeets WJ , González A .

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Because our knowledge of cholinergic systems in the brains of amphibians is limited, the present study aimed to provide detailed information on the distribution of cholinergic cell bodies and fibers as revealed by immunohistochemistry with antibodies directed against the enzyme choline acetyltransferase (ChAT). To determine general and derived features of the cholinergic systems within the class of Amphibia, both anuran (Rana perezi, Xenopus laevis) and urodele (Pleurodeles waltl) amphibians were studied. Distinct groups of ChAT-immunoreactive cell bodies were observed in the basal telencephalon, hypothalamus, habenula, isthmic nucleus, isthmic reticular formation, cranial nerve motor nuclei, and spinal cord. Prominent plexuses of cholinergic fibers were found in the olfactory bulb, pallium, basal telencephalon, ventral thalamus, tectum, and nucleus interpeduncularis. Comparison of these results with those obtained in other vertebrates, including a segmental approach to correlate cell populations, reveals that the cholinergic systems in amphibians share many features with amniotes. Thus, cholinergic pedunculopontine and laterodorsal tegmental nuclei could be identified in the amphibian brain. The finding of weakly immunoreactive cells in the striatum of Rana, which is in contrast with the condition found in Xenopus, Pleurodeles, and other anamniotes studied so far, has revived the notion that basal ganglia organization is more preserved during evolution than previously thought.

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Species referenced: Xenopus laevis
Genes referenced: chat
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	Fig. 4. Photomicrographs showing the ChATi cells in the anuran oculomotor and throchlear nuclei. a: Transverse section through the oculomotor nucleus of Rana perezi (arrowheads point to weakly labeled cells at the dorsal aspect of the nucleus). b: Transverse section through the oculomotor nuclei of Xenopus laevis (arrowheads point to the ChATi cells of the nucleus interoculomotorius). c: Horizontal section through the brain of Rana perezi showing the rostrocaudal continuation of the oculomotor and trochlear nuclei. d: Transverse section at the level of the trochlear nucleus of Rana perezi (arrows point to the trochlear axons). Scale bars5100 μm in a,c, 200 μm in b,d.
	Fig. 6. Photomicrograph of a horizontal section through the rhombencephalon of Xenopus laevis at the level of the branchiomotor nuclei. The approximate boundaries of the rhombomeres are indicated on the right side. Scale bar 5 100 μm.
	Fig. 8. Photomicrographs of ChATi cells and fibers in the caudal rhombencephalon and upper spinal cord of anurans. a: Transverse section through the hypoglossal nucleus of Rana perezi (arrows point to lateral hypoglossal labeled neurons). b: Transverse section of Xenopus laevis at a level comparable to that shown in a showing the lack of a hypoglossal nucleus. c: Sagittal section of the upper spinal cord at lateral levels showing the ChATi motor neurons. d: Transverse section through the spinal cord of Rana perezi, where, in addition to the ventral motoneurons, small and weakly labeled cells are present in the intermediate zone (arrows). Scale bars 5 200 μm.
	Fig. 15. Photomicrographs of transverse sections through the brain of anurans illustrating ChATi fibers in the pretectal region (a), the optic tectum of Rana perezi (b) and Xenopus laevis (c), the caudal tectum and the istmus (d), and the cerebellum (e). Numbers in b and c indicate some of the tectal layers. Arrowheads in a point to fiber bundles of the fasciculus retroflexus. Scale bars 5 200 μm in a,d, 50 μm in b,c,e.