Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of A Coruña, Campus da Zapateira, E-15008 A Coruña, Spain.
Neuroscience. 2009 Dec 29;164(4):1712-20. doi: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2009.09.043. Epub 2009 Sep 23.
The pineal organ in fishes is a photoreceptive organ with dual outputs, neuroendocrine and neural. The neural projections of the zebrafish pineal were experimentally studied by means of tract-tracing with carbocyanine dyes (1,1'-dioctadecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate (DiI), 3,3'-dioctadecyloxacarbocyanine perchlorate (DiO)). Double-labeling experiments were also performed in order to investigate the degree of overlapping of pineal, retinal or cerebellar projections in zebrafish. The pineal organ sends efferent fibers bilaterally to the rostral hypothalamus, thalamus, pretectum, posterior tubercle and the mesencephalic tegmentum. A few pinealofugal fibers could also be traced to the optic tectum. Most of the targets of the zebrafish pineal also receive retinal and/or cerebellar afferents, indicating a high degree of overlap with these projections. Since most of the targets of the pineal projections of zebrafish appear to be premotor and precerebellar centers, the neural output of the pineal organ is probably, because of its photoreceptive and circadian function, involved in photic and circadian modulation of these centers.
鱼类的松果体是一个具有双重输出的光感受器官，即神经内分泌和神经。通过用碳菁染料（1,1'-二辛基-3,3,3',3'-四甲基吲哚碳菁高氯酸盐（DiI）、3,3'-二辛基氧杂碳菁高氯酸盐（DiO））进行追踪实验，研究了斑马鱼松果体的神经投射。还进行了双标记实验，以研究斑马鱼松果体、视网膜或小脑投射的重叠程度。松果体器官向双侧发出传出纤维到前下丘脑、丘脑、顶盖、后结节和中脑被盖。也可以追踪到少数松果体的传出纤维到视顶盖。斑马鱼松果体的大多数靶标也接收视网膜和/或小脑传入，表明与这些投射有很高的重叠。由于斑马鱼松果体投射的大多数靶标似乎是前运动和小脑前中心，因此松果体器官的神经输出可能由于其光感受和昼夜节律功能而参与这些中心的光和昼夜节律调制。
