Distribution of GABA immunoreactivity in the optic tectum of the frog: a light and electron microscopic study

GABA immunoreactivity was studied in the optic tectum of the frog, Rana esculenta, by postembedding immunohistochemical methods at the light and electron microscopic levels. Nearly one-third of the total population of tectal cells appeared to be GABA-immunoreactive. The proportion of stained neurons was highest in layer 9 (61%), and they occurred less frequently in layers 7 (21%) and 6 (27%). Stained perikarya represented a population of small neurons with a diameter of 8-10 microns. Large cell bodies in layer 7 or at the top of layer 6, and cells of origin of the mesencephalic trigeminal tract in layer 2, were devoid of labelling. Axon terminals and dendrites displaying immunoreactivity for GABA were observed in all of the plexiform layers. On the basis of ultrastructural characteristics two types of GABA-positive axon terminals and two variations of GABA-immunoreactive dendrites were distinguished. Synaptic relations of GABA-immunoreactive and GABA-negative axons as well as dendrites were also studied. Besides a wide variety of axodendritic synapses, dendrodendritic synaptic appositions were also revealed. The results suggest that various inhibitory mechanisms are involved in tectal circuits, which have to be incorporated into future neuronal models concerning visual information processing in the optic tectum of the frog.