Hypothalamic neurones in culture. II. A progress report.

Cultures of the hypothalamic supraoptic nucleus area were prepared from 1--10 day old rats by means of the roller-tube technique. After 3 weeks in vitro large nerve cells with long, thin and repeatedly branching axons could be observed. In silver-stained co-cultures of hypothalamic and hypophysial tissue, fibers were seen to bridge the gap between the adjacent explants. Intracellular current injection into the large nerve cells elicited single or repetitive action potentials. Two types of spontaneous discharge patterns were observed. The majority of cells fired randomly and the remainder displayed a phasic dicharge pattern. Simultaneous recordings from 2 cells disclosed that pairs of phasic cells had a tendency to fire in synchronous bursts.