Morphological variations among output neurons of the olfactory bulb in the frog (Rana ridibunda)

Morphological properties of putative output cells have been studied in detail in the olfactory bulb of frogs (Rana ridibunda). Intracellular injection of Lucifer Yellow was used to reconstruct individual neurons. Ten different anatomical features related to cell shape and position were studied quantitatively. The results show that output cells, generally considered to be a homogeneous group in the olfactory bulb of amphibians, are, in fact, quite different in their morphology. Using multidimensional analysis to examine differences among the output neurons, we found that they might be divided into at least two groups. In one group, the cell somata were located near the glomerular layer and the dendrites lay at large angles with respect to each other. In the other group, the cell somata were farther from the glomerular layer and their dendrites lay at smaller angles. From their morphology, these two cell groups appear to be homologous, respectively, to the superficial/middle tufted cells and deep tufted/mitral cells of mammals.