Developmental expression of neurotypy revealed by immunocytochemistry with monoclonal antibodies.

Adult and developing rat cerebella were stained immunocytochemically with six neuron-specific monoclonal antibodies obtained from spleen cells of BALB/c mice immunized with hypothalamus. Monoclonal peroxidase-antiperoxidase complex was used in the staining procedure. In the adult, three different staining patterns were seen with these antibodies. The general patterns have been designated as (1) neurofibrillar, (2) perikaryal-neurofribillar, and (3) synapse-associated. In addition, each antibody within a designated group showed a different immunocytochemical distribution. Some antibodies reacted widely, for example, with many neuronal perikarya and fibers, and their distribution increased with the development of the brain. Other antibodies had a more restricted distribution and stained only some structures within an area or pathway. To account for this type of restriction of distribution, we propose that there may be microheterogeneity of some of the antigens visualized and have called this microheterogeneity 'neurotypy'. A second type of restriction was also observed. With several antibodies a loss of staining occurred in the adult cerebellum in structures that had reacted during early development. These differences in staining probably reflect developmental regulation of the antigens (neurotypes).