Distribution and development of glutamic acid decarboxylase immunoreactivity in the spinal cord of the dogfish Scyliorhinus canicula (elasmobranchs).

The adult distribution and development of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)-synthesizing cells and fibers in the spinal cord of the lesser spotted dogfish (Scyliorhinus canicula L.) was studied by means of immunohistochemistry using antibodies against glutamic acid decarboxylase (GAD). Complementary immunostaining with antibodies against GABA, tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), and HuC/HuD (members of the Hu/Elav family of RNA-associated proteins) and staining with a reduced silver procedure ("en bloc" Bielschowski method), Nissl, and hematoxylin were also used. In adults, GAD-immunoreactive (GAD-ir) cells were observed in the ventral horns, in the spinal nucleus of the dorsal horn, at the base of the dorsal horns, and around the central canal, where some GAD-ir cells were cerebrospinal fluid-contacting (CSF-c). In addition, a few GAD-ir cells were observed in the lateral funiculus between the ventral horn and the marginal nucleus. The adult spinal cord was richly innervated by GAD-ir fibers. Large numbers of GAD-ir fibers and boutons were observed in the dorsal and ventral horns and also interstitially in the dorsal, lateral, and ventral funiculi. In addition, a rich GAD-ir innervation was observed in the marginal nucleus of the spinal cord. In the embryonic spinal cord, GAD-ir cells develop very early: The earliest cells were observed in the very thin mantle/marginal layer of stage 22 embryos in a short length of the spinal cord. At stages 25 and 26, several types of GAD-ir cells (commissural and noncommissural) were distinguished, and two of these cells were of CSF-c type. At stages 28, 30, and 31, the GAD-ir populations exhibited a marked longitudinal columnar organization. Double-immunolabeling experiments in embryos showed the presence of two different GAD-ir CSF-c cell populations, one ventral that is simultaneously TH-ir and other more dorsal that is TH-negative. By stage 33 (prehatching), GAD-expressing cells are present in virtually all loci, as in adults, especially in the ventral horn and base of the dorsal horn. The present results for the lesser spotted dogfish suggest an important role for gamma-aminobutyric acid in sensory and motor circuits of the spinal cord.