Calretinin Neurons in the Rat Suprachiasmatic Nucleus

The hypothalamic suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), a circadian pacemaker, is present in all mammalian brains. It has a complex organization of peptide-containing neurons that is similar among species, but calcium-binding proteins are expressed variably. Neurons containing calretinin have been described in the SCN in a number of species but not with association to circadian function. The objective of the present study is to characterize a calretinin neuron (CAR) group in the rat anterior hypothalamus anatomically and functionally with a detailed description of its location and a quantitative analysis of neuronal calretinin immunoreactivity at 3 times of day, 0600, 1400, and 1900 h, from animals in either light-dark or constant dark conditions. CAR neurons occupy a region in the dorsal and lateral SCN with a circadian rhythm in CAR immunoreactivity with a peak at 0600 h and a rhythm in cytoplasmic CAR distribution with a peak at 1400 h. CAR neurons should be viewed as an anatomical and functional component of the rat SCN that expands the definition from observations with cell stains. CAR neurons are likely to modulate temporal regulation of calcium in synaptic transmission.