Origin, course and terminations of the rubrospinal tract in the pigeon (Columba livia)

The red nucleus and its spinal projections in the pigeon (Columba livia) have been studied using both normal and experimental material. The cytoarchitecture of the nucleus is described on the basis of Nissl-stained sections and reveals an organization generally similar to that of mammals. The large neurons (40-50 mum) tend to be located dorsomedially and ventrolaterally at more caudal nuclear levels, while the small- and medium-sized neurons (15-35 mum) predominate at rostral levels. However, neurons of all sizes are present throughout the nucleus. Following lesions of the nucleus, the course of degenerating axons stained with the Fink-Heimer method has been traced throughout the brainstem and spinal cord. The rubrospinal tract crosses the midline, courses past the ventrocaudal aspect of the contralateral nucleus ruber, and then descends rostro-ventral and lateral to the nucleus tegmenti pontinus. In its caudal continuation the tract lies ventral to the brachium conjunctivum and the entering radix of the trigeminal nerve. It then assumes a ventrolateral position in the caudal brainstem before shifting to a dorsolateral position in the lateral funiculus of the spinal cord. Within the spinal grey the rubrospinal tract terminates in laminae V, VI and to a lesser extent VII. The possibility of a topographical organization of the nucleus was investigated with injections of horseradish peroxidase into brachial, thoracic and lumbar spinal cord. Regardless of the level of injection, labelled neurons of all sizes were present throughout the contralateral nucleus ruber, indicating the absence of an obvious topography.