Selective degeneration of the parvocellular-projecting retinal ganglion cells in a New World monkey, Saimiri sciureus

Selective degeneration of retinal ganglion cells projecting to parvocellular layers of the dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) was observed in squirrel monkeys (Saimiri sciureus) exposed to a range of doses of acrylamide monomer. Similar acrylamide-induced neuronal loss has previously been reported in parvocellular-projecting ganglion cells of macaques, but no such selective degeneration has been found in acrylamide-dosed rats, squirrels, rabbits or cats. The extent of ganglion cell loss observed in the present study suggests that in the squirrel monkey, as in the macaque, a majority of ganglion cells project to parvocellular layers of the LGN. The locus of optic tract degeneration suggests that the squirrel monkey parvocellular pathway passes in dorsolateral optic tract, as does that of the macaque. Patterns of decreases in cytochrome oxidase activity confirm that, in both of these primates, geniculocortical pathways driven by these vulnerable neurons project to cortical layers 4A and 4C beta. These results suggest close parallels in the neuroanatomical projections and toxic vulnerability of the parvocellular-projecting pathway in New and Old World monkeys. They indicate that acrylamide intoxication can be used to selectively damage this pathway in order to study the functional roles of parallel visual pathways in both New and Old World monkeys.