Brain stem topography of vagus nerve to the greater curvature of the stomach.

If preganglionic vagus nerve fibers enter the stomach via all of its neurovascular bundles, then proximal gastric vagotomy that divides only the bundles along the lesser curvature of the stomach neglects a potential source of innervation to the parietal cells. To determine whether or not these bundles contained preganglionic efferent vagal nerve fibers, horseradish peroxidase was applied to the central cut end of selected neurovascular bundles along the greater curvature of the stomach in rats and ferrets. Cells in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (dmnX) of the rat were labeled after horseradish peroxidase applications to the right gastroepiploic, the splenic, and the short gastric bundles. The ferrets had horseradish peroxidase applied to the right gastroepiploic bundle and they also had cellular labeling of the dmnX. The labeling in cells of the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus had a distinct topographic, rostrocaudal distribution in both species, and was maximal in the vicinity of the obex. Cells of the bilateral dmnX were labeled after horseradish peroxidase applications at all bundles. This study showed (1) that the bundles along the greater curvature of the stomach contained preganglionic efferent vagus nerve fibers, (2) that the cells of origin of these fibers were represented in the localized rostrocaudal position of the dmnX, and (3) that these fibers had their origins in the bilateral dmnX. Such nerve fibers may account for incomplete vagal denervation of the parietal cells after proximal gastric vagotomy.