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Connection Input Mapping and 3D Reconstruction of the Brainstem and Spinal Cord Projections to the CSF-Contacting
Si-Yuan Song1, Ying Li1, Xiao-Meng Zhai1
1Jiangsu Province Key Laboratory of Anesthesiology, Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, China.
Objective:
To investigate whether the CSF-contacting nucleus receives brainstem and spinal cord projections and to understand the functional significance of these connections.
Methods:
The retrograde tracer cholera toxin B subunit (CB) was injected into the CSF-contacting nucleus in Sprague-Dawley rats according the previously reported stereotaxic coordinates. After 7-10 days, these rats were perfused and their brainstem and spinal cord were sliced (thickness, 40 μm) using a freezing microtome. All the sections were subjected to CB immunofluorescence staining. The distribution of CB-positive neuron in different brainstem and spinal cord areas was observed under fluorescence microscope.
Results:
The retrograde labeled CB-positive neurons were found in the midbrain, pons, medulla oblongata, and spinal cord. Four functional areas including one hundred and twelve sub-regions have projections to the CSF-contacting nucleus. However, the density of CB-positive neuron distribution ranged from sparse to dense.
Conclusion:
Based on the connectivity patterns of the CSF-contacting nucleus receives anatomical inputs from the brainstem and spinal cord, we preliminarily conclude and summarize that the CSF-contacting nucleus participates in pain, visceral activity, sleep and arousal, emotion, and drug addiction. The present study firstly illustrates the broad projections of the CSF-contacting nucleus from the brainstem and spinal cord, which implies the complicated functions of the nucleus especially for the unique roles of coordination in neural and body fluids regulation.
