Biomaterial Database

Somatotopic termination of spinal afferents to the feline lateral cervical nucleus. 1985

B A Svensson, and J Rastad, and J Westman, and M Wiberg

The labelling pattern of the feline lateral cervical nucleus (LCN) was investigated after pressure injections of lectin-conjugated horseradish peroxidase into cervical, thoracic or lumbar segments of the spinal cord. Sixteen cats received a 5-8 nl injection staining large parts of mainly the ipsilateral grey matter of a single segment. Light microscopic examination of frozen sections reacted with tetramethylbenzidine showed a somatotopic organization in the LCN. Rostral segments of the spinal cord projected mainly to rostroventral and medial parts of the ipsilateral LCN, while more caudally located segments projected to more dorsocaudal and lateral parts of the nucleus. Minor contralateral labelling with a similar somatotopic arrangement was seen in animals given cervical and lumbar injections. No significant labelling was found in the LCN of three control animals, the segmental injections of which were engaged mainly into the ipsilateral dorsal columns and the dorsolateral funiculus. Ultrastructural analysis in two animals which received multiple cervical or lumbar injections showed that about 70% of the peroxidase-positive structures in the LCN were boutons and the rest small myelinated axons. The precise termination pattern of ascending afferents to the LCN is compatible with the somatotopic organization of the other relay centres in the spino-cervico-thalamic pathway.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D008854	Microscopy, Electron	Microscopy using an electron beam, instead of light, to visualize the sample, thereby allowing much greater magnification. The interactions of ELECTRONS with specimens are used to provide information about the fine structure of that specimen. In TRANSMISSION ELECTRON MICROSCOPY the reactions of the electrons that are transmitted through the specimen are imaged. In SCANNING ELECTRON MICROSCOPY an electron beam falls at a non-normal angle on the specimen and the image is derived from the reactions occurring above the plane of the specimen.	Electron Microscopy
D002415	Cats	The domestic cat, Felis catus, of the carnivore family FELIDAE, comprising over 30 different breeds. The domestic cat is descended primarily from the wild cat of Africa and extreme southwestern Asia. Though probably present in towns in Palestine as long ago as 7000 years, actual domestication occurred in Egypt about 4000 years ago. (From Walker's Mammals of the World, 6th ed, p801)	Felis catus,Felis domesticus,Domestic Cats,Felis domestica,Felis sylvestris catus,Cat,Cat, Domestic,Cats, Domestic,Domestic Cat
D000344	Afferent Pathways	Nerve structures through which impulses are conducted from a peripheral part toward a nerve center.	Afferent Pathway,Pathway, Afferent,Pathways, Afferent
D000818	Animals	Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA.	Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D013116	Spinal Cord	A cylindrical column of tissue that lies within the vertebral canal. It is composed of WHITE MATTER and GRAY MATTER.	Coccygeal Cord,Conus Medullaris,Conus Terminalis,Lumbar Cord,Medulla Spinalis,Myelon,Sacral Cord,Thoracic Cord,Coccygeal Cords,Conus Medullari,Conus Terminali,Cord, Coccygeal,Cord, Lumbar,Cord, Sacral,Cord, Spinal,Cord, Thoracic,Cords, Coccygeal,Cords, Lumbar,Cords, Sacral,Cords, Spinal,Cords, Thoracic,Lumbar Cords,Medulla Spinali,Medullari, Conus,Medullaris, Conus,Myelons,Sacral Cords,Spinal Cords,Spinali, Medulla,Spinalis, Medulla,Terminali, Conus,Terminalis, Conus,Thoracic Cords