Department of Animal Anatomy, University of Warmia and Mazury, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Oczapowskiego 13, 10-689 Olsztyn, Poland.
C R Biol. 2020 Jun 5;343(1):53-62. doi: 10.5802/crbiol.4.
The aim of the present study was to investigate the distribution of neuronal perikarya and nerve fibres and their chemical coding in the heart of 10-week-old porcine foetuses. The foetuses, obtained from a local slaughterhouse, were fixed by immersion in 4% buffered (pH 7.4) paraformaldehyde. Cryostat sections of the hearts were processed for single- or double-labelling immunofluorescence methods using antibodies against protein gene product (PGP) dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DβH), acetylcholine vesicular transporter (VAChT) and calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP). Numerous clusters of the PGP-positive nerve cells were observed throughout the heart wall. The majority of the clusters were found beneath the epicardium around the root of the aorta, pulmonary trunk and main veins. Some single PGP-positive neurons or small clusters of nerve cells were observed in the epicardium of heart atria and ventricles. The richest network of PGP-positive nerve fibres was observed in the base of the heart near the main cardiac blood vessel openings. Many bundles of PGP-positive nerve fibres were observed throughout the four cardiac chambers. Double-immunohistochemical staining revealed that the majority of the neurons contained immunoreactivity to VAChT, some of them stained for CGRP and the single neuronal somata were DβH-positive. The nerve fibres supplying the heart expressed immunoreactivity to DβH, VAChT or CGRP. The distribution and neurochemical coding of the nerve structures in ten-week-old foetuses are different from those observed in the hearts of juvenile pigs.
本研究旨在探讨 10 周龄猪胎儿心脏内神经元胞体和神经纤维及其化学编码的分布。这些胎儿是从当地屠宰场获得的，通过浸泡在 4%缓冲（pH7.4）多聚甲醛中进行固定。心脏的冷冻切片通过使用针对蛋白基因产物（PGP）、多巴胺β-羟化酶（DβH）、乙酰胆碱囊泡转运体（VAChT）和降钙素基因相关肽（CGRP）的单标或双标免疫荧光方法进行处理。在心脏壁各处观察到大量的 PGP 阳性神经细胞簇。大多数簇位于心外膜下方，围绕主动脉、肺动脉干和大静脉的根部。在心房和心室的心外膜上也观察到一些单个的 PGP 阳性神经元或小簇的神经细胞。PGP 阳性神经纤维最丰富的网络位于心脏基部靠近主要心血管开口处。在四个心腔中均观察到许多束 PGP 阳性神经纤维。双免疫组织化学染色显示，大多数神经元含有 VAChT 免疫反应性，其中一些神经元对 CGRP 染色，而单个神经元胞体对 DβH 呈阳性。供应心脏的神经纤维表达 DβH、VAChT 或 CGRP 的免疫反应性。10 周龄胎儿心脏中的神经结构的分布和神经化学编码与幼猪心脏中的观察结果不同。
