An identified dorsal unpaired median neurone and bilaterally projecting neurones exhibiting bovine pancreatic polypeptide-like/FMRFamide-like immunoreactivity in abdominal ganglia of the migratory locust.

Three antisera were used to study the distribution and anatomy of bovine pancreatic polypeptide (BPP)-like/FMRFamide-like immunoreactive neurones within the unfused abdominal ganglia of the migratory locust, Locusta migratoria. All the antisera used stained two or more clusters of perikarya, localized anteriorly and posteriorly near the midline within each unfused abdominal ganglion. Double labelling experiments with intracellular dye injection, or differential backfilling, combined with subsequent immunostaining were carried out to identify these neurones. Two of the antisera (antisera 1 and 2, both raised against FMRFamide) stained three groups of midline neurones, located anterior dorsal, anterior ventral and posterior dorsal within the ganglion. Neurones of the former of these two clusters projected via the anterior median nerve to a neurohaemal organ. The posterior cluster of midline cells comprised immunopositive perikarya all but one of which also projected via the anterior median nerve to innervate the neurohaemal organ. Double labelling with Lucifer yellow and antisera 1 and 2 showed that the remaining neurone was the previously identified dorsal unpaired median (DUM)heart 1 neurone. The third antiserum (AK141), also raised against FMRFamide, stained neurones within an anterior dorsal cluster, and in a posterior cluster. Double labelling with differential Co2+/Ni(2+)-backfilling and the antiserum 3 (AK141) demonstrated that the large neurones of both clusters belonged to the population of bilaterally projecting neurones (BPNs), including the DUMheart1 neurone. Since the antisera cross-react with BPP and fail to label neurones when preadsorped with BPP or FMRFamide, we conclude that the labelled neurones contain polypeptides of the FMRFamide/BPP-family.