Abstract
During the normal development of the nucleus of origin of centrifugal fibers to the chick retina (the so-called isthmo-optic nucleus) a significant number of neurons are misrouted during their migration from the neural epithelium in which they are generated. Like the cells in the isthmo-optic nucleus, these ectopic neurons can be identified by the retrograde transport of horseradish peroxidase (donor: hydrogen peroxide oxidoreductase, EC 1.11.1.7) injected into the eye. Between 500 and 600 such cells have been identified on one side of the brain of 12 to 15-day-old embryos, but only about 10% of this number is seen beyond hatching. In addition, during development some of the cells in the nucleus send their axons to the ipsilateral retina, whereas in post-hatched animals they all project to the contralateral retina. The number of such neurons with aberrant axons is greatly increased (in some cases by as much as two orders of magnitude) in chicks from which one eye was removed early in development. Although normally about 60% of the neurons in the isthmo-optic nucleus degenerate between the 13th and 17th days of incubation, they can almost all be labeled by intraocular injections of horseradish peroxidase on the 12th day, indicating that the axons of virtually all the cells, including those neurone that subsequently die, reach the retina.
Full text
PDF
Images in this article
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Bagust J., Lewis D. M., Westerman R. A. Polyneuronal innervation of kitten skeletal muscle. J Physiol. 1973 Feb;229(1):241–255. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1973.sp010136. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Cowan W. M., Wenger E. The development of the nucleus of origin of centrifugal fibers to the retina in the chick. J Comp Neurol. 1968 Jun;133(2):207–240. doi: 10.1002/cne.901330205. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Dowling J. E., Cowan W. M. An electron microscope study of normal and degenerating centrifugal fiber terminals in the pigeon retina. Z Zellforsch Mikrosk Anat. 1966;71(1):14–28. doi: 10.1007/BF00339827. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Hamburger V. Cell death in the development of the lateral motor column of the chick embryo. J Comp Neurol. 1975 Apr 15;160(4):535–546. doi: 10.1002/cne.901600408. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kristensson K., Olsson Y. Retrograde axonal transport of protein. Brain Res. 1971 Jun 18;29(2):363–365. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(71)90044-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- LaVail J. H., LaVail M. M. The retrograde intraaxonal transport of horseradish peroxidase in the chick visual system: a light and electron microscopic study. J Comp Neurol. 1974 Oct 1;157(3):303–357. doi: 10.1002/cne.901570304. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- LaVail J. H., Winston K. R., Tish A. A method based on retrograde intraaxonal transport of protein for identification of cell bodies of origin of axons terminating within the CNS. Brain Res. 1973 Aug 30;58(2):470–477. doi: 10.1016/0006-8993(73)90016-4. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Maturana H. R., Frenk S. Synaptic connections of the centrifugal fibers in the pigeon retina. Science. 1965 Oct 15;150(3694):359–361. doi: 10.1126/science.150.3694.359. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- McGill J. I., Powell T. P., Cowan W. M. The retinal representation upon the optic tectum and isthmo-optic nucleus in the pigeon. J Anat. 1966 Jan;100(Pt 1):5–33. [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Prestige M. C. Axon and cell numbers in the developing nervous system. Br Med Bull. 1974 May;30(2):107–111. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.bmb.a071178. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Redfern P. A. Neuromuscular transmission in new-born rats. J Physiol. 1970 Aug;209(3):701–709. doi: 10.1113/jphysiol.1970.sp009187. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]