Oligodendrocyte/myelin-immunoreactivity in the developing olfactory system

Immunocytochemistry was used to characterize oligodendrocyte maturation in the developing mammalian olfactory system. Postnatal day 10-16, 20, 30 and adult rats were examined, as well as postnatal day 20, 30, 40 and adult Monodelphis domestica (the grey, short-tailed opossum). In rats, oligodendrocyte/myelin-immunoreactivity first appears in the accessory olfactory bulb by day 11, with labeling rapidly increasing throughout the entire bulb over the next five days. An adult pattern of immunoreactivity, characterized by dense labeling in the granule cell layer, sparse immunoreactivity in the external plexiform layer, and staining along the periphery of glomeruli, is attained by day 30. Staining is apparent in both the lateral olfactory tract and anterior commissure by day 11, and becomes heavy by day 20. While patterns of oligodendrocyte/myelin-immunoreactivity in the adult Monodelphis and rat bulb are similar, staining first appears much later in the opossum (around day 30), and maturation occurs more slowly. For example, rostral-caudal gradients in the development of staining in the anterior commissure were noted which were not seen in the rat. These differences emerge because Monodelphis' slower growth allows more resolution into developmental sequences. Finally, in rats, unilateral naris closure on the day after birth, which significantly alters normal patterns of bulb development, has no effect on the pattern and level of immunoreactivity even after long (30 day) survival periods. In both normal and naris occluded rats, oligodendrocyte/myelin-immunoreactivity is found in caudal aspects of the rat bulb on day 11 and subsequently progresses throughout the entire bulb over the next five days. Patterns in the Monodelphis bulb mirror those observed in the rat, however, staining appears later and progresses more slowly, suggesting Monodelphis is a useful animal for examining early myelin formation.