Central projections of the mesencephalic nucleus of the fifth nerve: an autoradiographic study.

Projections of cells of the mesencephalic nucleus of the fifth nerve (Mes V) to brainstem structures in the cat were studied by labelling Mes V cells with tritiated leucine. Before the leucine injections were made, however, large kainic acid lesions were produced in the vicinity of Mes V cells because these neurons are resistant to being killed or injured by this neurotoxin. Thus Mes V cells were selectively labelled by the leucine even though they are scattered among many other neurons. Leucine injections near Mes V cells located in the mesencephalon, which are primarily the somata of jaw muscle spindle afferent fibers, produced essentially the same pattern of terminal labelling as injections near a caudally located group of Mes V cells that includes the somata of many tooth mechanoreceptive afferents. Labelling was dense above the trigeminal motor nucleus in the nucleus supratrigeminalis and in the most medial portion of the principal trigeminal sensory nucleus. A scattering of labelled axons and diffuse label was seen along the length of the tract of Probst, which follows the medial border of the descending trigeminal sensory nucleus as far caudally as the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus. Labelling within most of the trigeminal motor nucleus, which is known to receive direct synaptic input from Mes V cells, was very light. The only reasonably dense region of label was confined to a small dorsolateral portion of the motor nucleus. Although Mes V has generally been supposed to be involved with jaw control in a direct, reflexive manner, the extensive projections to nucleus supratrigeminalis and parts of the trigeminal sensory system draw attention to the potential proprioceptive sensory contribution of Mes V.