[Structural and functional organization of cart peptide-expressing neurons in brain amygdala].

The aim of the study was to identify the specific features of structural and functional organization of the neurons in dorsomedial nucleus of amygdala containing immunoreactive CART peptide. The study was carried out on 15 Wistar rats using an immunocytochemical demonstration of CART peptide and Golgi method. CART peptide-expressing neurons in subependymal zone of the nucleus were shown to be neuroblastoformal, while those located in its central zones were short-dendritic. These data demonstrate that CART peptide-expressing neurons are belong to a sparcely branched neuronal system. The results obtained in this work together with the analysis of the literature and the provisions of A.L. Polenov (1993) concept on the origin and evolution of the neuroendocrine cells and neurohormonal regulation in Metazoa, suggest that CART peptide appeared during the early stages of the formation of the regulatory chemical communication in the multicellular organisms.