Ultrastructural identification of catecholaminergic fibers in the goldfish pituitary. A high-resolution radioautographic study after in vitro 3H-dopamine administration.

The monoaminergic innervation of the goldfish pituitary gland was studied by means of light- and electron-microscopic radioautography after in vitro administration of 3H-dopamine. The tracer was specifically incorporated and retained by part of the type-B fibers innervating the different lobes of the pituitary. In the rostral pars distalis labeled fibers were most frequently observed in contact with the basement membrane separating the neurohypophysis and the adenohypophysis. In the proximal pars distalis and the pars intermedia, labeled profiles were detected in the neural tissue and in direct contact with the different types of secretory cells. According to the previous data concerning the uptake and retention of tritiated catecholamines in the central nervous system, it is assumed that the labeled fibers are mainly catecholaminergic (principally dopaminergic). This study provides morphological evidence for a neuroendocrine function of catecholamines in the goldfish.