Differential dopaminergic innervation of the two pallidal segments in the squirrel monkey (Saimiri sciureus)

Immunohistochemical studies with an antiserum raised against tyrosine hydroxylase have allowed us to demonstrate a dense dopaminergic innervation of the globus pallidus in the squirrel monkey. This innervation derived mostly from two fascicles that detached themselves from the major ascending dopaminergic bundle arising from midbrain dopamine cell bodies and running in the lateral hypothalamus. Dopaminergic fibers reached the globus pallidus by coursing along its two major output pathways: the lenticular fasciculus dorsally and the ansa lenticularis ventrally. At pallidal levels, dopaminergic fibers abounded in medullary laminae and arborized profusely within the internal pallidal segment, whereas the external pallidum displayed only few short fibers that prevailed in its dorsal portion. These findings provide the first evidence that the primate globus pallidus receives a massive and differentially distributed dopaminergic input.