A novel path for rapid transverse communication of vestibular signals in turtle cerebellum

Voltage-sensitive dye activity within the thin, unfoliated turtle cerebellar cortex (Cb) was recorded in vitro during eighth cranial nerve (nVIII) stimulation. Short latency responses were localized to the middle of the lateral edges of both ipsilateral and contralateral Cb [vestibulocerebellum (vCb)]. Even with a severed contralateral Cb peduncle, stimulation of the nVIII ipsilateral to the intact peduncle evoked contralateral vCb responses with a mean latency of only 0.25 ms after the ipsilateral responses, even though the distance between them was ∼ 5 mm. We investigated whether a rapidly conducting commissure exists between each vCb by stimulating one of them directly. Responses in both vCb spread sagittally, but, surprisingly, there was no sequential activation along a transverse Cb beam between them. In contrast, stimulation medial to either vCb evoked transverse beams that required ∼ 20 ms to cross the Cb. Therefore, the rapid commissural connection between each vCb is not mediated by slowly conducting parallel fibers. Also, the vCb was not strongly activated by climbing fiber stimulation, suggesting that inputs to vCb involve distinct cerebellar circuits. Responses between the two vCb remained following knife cuts through the rostral and caudal Cb along the midline, through both peduncles, and even shallow midline cuts to the middle Cb through its white matter and granule cell layer. Commissural responses were still observed only with a narrow transverse bridge between each vCb or in thick transverse Cb slices. Horseradish peroxidase transport from one vCb labeled transverse axons traveling within the Purkinje cell layer that were larger than parallel fibers and lacked varicosities. In sagittal sections, cross-section profiles of myelinated axons were observed around Purkinje cells midway between the rostral and caudal Cb. This novel pathway for transverse communication between lateral edges of turtle Cb suggests that afferents may directly conduct vestibular information rapidly across the Cb to coordinate vestibulomotor reflex behaviors.