Lysakowski A, Alonto A, Jacobson L
Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Illinois at Chicago, 60612, USA.
Hear Res. 1999 Jul;133(1-2):149-54. doi: 10.1016/s0378-5955(99)00065-9.
Recent morphophysiological studies have described three different subpopulations of vestibular afferents. The purpose of this study was to determine whether peripherin, a 56-kDa type III intermediate filament protein present in small sensory neurons in dorsal root ganglion and spiral ganglion cells, would also label thin vestibular afferents. Peripherin immunohistochemistry was done on vestibular sensory organs (cristae ampullares, utriculi and sacculi) of chinchillas, rats, and mice. In these sensory organs, immunoreactivity was confined to the extrastriolar region of the utriculus and the peripheral region of the crista. The labelled terminals were all boutons, except for an occasional calyx. In vestibular ganglia, immunoreactivity was restricted to small vestibular ganglion cells with thin axons. The immunoreactive central axons of vestibular ganglion cells form narrow bundles as they pass through the caudal spinal trigeminal tract. As they exit this tract, several bundles coalesce to form a single, narrow bundle passing caudally through the ventral part of the lateral vestibular nucleus. Finally, we conclude that all labelled axons and terminals were vestibular afferents rather than efferents, as no immunoreactivity in the vestibular efferent nucleus of the brainstem was observed.
最近的形态生理学研究描述了前庭传入神经的三种不同亚群。本研究的目的是确定外周蛋白（一种存在于背根神经节和螺旋神经节细胞中小感觉神经元中的56 kDa III型中间丝蛋白）是否也会标记薄型前庭传入神经。对龙猫、大鼠和小鼠的前庭感觉器官（壶腹嵴、椭圆囊和球囊）进行了外周蛋白免疫组织化学研究。在这些感觉器官中，免疫反应性局限于椭圆囊的纹外区域和嵴的周边区域。除偶尔有花萼外，标记的终末均为终扣。在前庭神经节中，免疫反应性局限于轴突较细的小前庭神经节细胞。前庭神经节细胞的免疫反应性中枢轴突在穿过尾侧脊髓三叉神经束时形成狭窄的束。当它们离开该束时，几个束合并形成一个单一的、狭窄的束，向尾侧穿过外侧前庭核的腹侧部分。最后，我们得出结论，所有标记的轴突和终末都是前庭传入神经而非传出神经，因为在脑干的前庭传出核中未观察到免疫反应性。
