[Postnatal maturation of vestibular nuclei in the cat: histological study by the Golgi-Cox method (author's transl)]

Postnatal maturation of vestibular nuclei in the cat was studied from both the qualitative and quantitative points of view, following impregnation of the sections by the Golgi-Cox method. Three principal data arise from our results. (1) The different vestibular neurones undergo significant growth during the first two weeks of extra-uterine life: during this time, the progressive disappearance of dendritic growth cones and filopodia, an increase in area and volume of the perikarya as well as that of dendritic fields are remarkable; the smallest neurones completing their maturation before the largest. (2) Average sized neurones of the superior vestibular nucleus show a significant increase in the number of dendritic spines between birth and the age of 3 days. (3) On the 12th day, a decrease in the number of dendritic spines is noted. This decrease is accompagnied by a modification in spine density along the dendrites.