Dietary sodium chloride deprivation throughout development selectively influences the terminal field organization of gustatory afferent fibers projecting to the rat nucleus of the solitary tract.

In order to determine whether the developing central gustatory system responds to altered sensory experience, terminal fields of the chorda tympani nerve (CT) within the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) in control, NaCl deprived, and rats in which CT taste responses "recovered" from NaCl deprivation were investigated via anterograde transport of HRP. Rats fed a low sodium diet (0.03% NaCl) from the third day of gestation to at least 35 days postnatal exhibited both abnormally distributed and irregularly shaped CT terminal fields. Specifically, the dorsal zone of the field was the smallest in controls whereas it was the largest in deprived rats, occupying more medial and caudal territory within the nucleus. The portion of the field immediately ventral to the dorsalmost zone was characterized by a compact, oval shape in control rats and an irregular, broad configuration in deprived rats. Although it has been observed that deprivation-induced changes in the neurophysiology of the CT are reversible, the central morphological alterations reported here remain abnormal. Restoration of 1.0% NaCl in the diet at 28 days postnatally, for at least 60 days, did not result in normal CT terminal fields. The pattern of the field in rats "recovered" from NaCl deprivation was comparable to that found in deprived rats, and the size of the field was three times that found in control and deprived rats. The terminal fields of another nerve containing gustatory afferents, the lingual-tonsilar branch of the glossopharyngeal nerve (LT-IX), were studied for comparison. Interestingly, the pattern of the LT-IX field was not altered by sodium deprivation. The relative size and topography of the LT-IX fields in deprived rats were similar to controls. Thus, sodium deprivation appears to alter selectively the anatomical organization of the CT. Differences in vulnerability between the CT and LT-IX terminal fields may derive from differences in the responsiveness of these nerves to NaCl, and/or to differences in the timing of early neural events.