Kane E S, Puglisi S G, Gordon B S
J Comp Neurol. 1981 May 20;198(3):483-513. doi: 10.1002/cne.901980308.
Large or "giant" neurons (average somatic diameter greater than 22 micron) of the dorsal cochlear nucleus (DCN) have been carefully described in this light (LM) and electron (EM) microscopic study of normal Nissl-stained and Golgi-impregnated cat brain stems. These neurons can be roughly classed by somatic shape (width:length ratio = r) as elongate (r less than 0.65), ovoid (0.65 less than or equal to r less than 0.75), or spherical (0.75 less than or equal to r less than or equal to 1.0) in Nissl-stained sections. However, orientation and location of somata, size, number, and distribution of basal dendrites and other cytological features seen in Nissl material provided five, easily recognized classes of large neurons: elongate bipolar, elongate multipolar, globular, radiate, and oriented multipolar giant cells. Further cytological details of the dendritic tree and axonal morphology of these neurons, observed in rapid Golgi impregnations of cat and kitten brain stems, extended these descriptive categories of giant neurons. These same deep DCN giant cells were identified in thick plastic sections and in subsequent thin sections. Thin sections showed further neuronal distinctions by relative density of somatic and dendritic synaptic inputs. All giant cells have dense synaptic inputs to basal and primary dendrites but only elongate multipolar and radiate giant cell somata have nearly continuous synaptic coverage of somata. Many axodendritic terminals and some axosomatic endings resemble cochlear endings as identified on fusiform cells of the DCN. Nauta preparations after ipsilateral cochlear ablations have confirmed (1) cochlear input to all giant cell types and (2) different patterns of input to each type. Hence, each giant cell type must process incoming auditory signals, but each cell must receive slightly different primary information. Since some giant cells of each type had observable axons heading into the dorsal acoustic stria, they must all carry encoded primary information to higher auditory centers.
在对正常尼氏染色和高尔基浸染的猫脑干进行的光学显微镜（LM）和电子显微镜（EM）研究中，已经对背侧耳蜗核（DCN）中的大型或“巨型”神经元（平均体细胞直径大于22微米）进行了详细描述。在尼氏染色切片中，这些神经元可根据体细胞形状（宽长比=r）大致分类为细长型（r小于0.65）、卵形（0.65小于或等于r小于0.75）或球形（0.75小于或等于r小于或等于1.0）。然而，在尼氏染色材料中观察到的体细胞的方向和位置、大小、数量、基底树突的分布以及其他细胞学特征，提供了五种易于识别的大型神经元类别：细长双极型、细长多极型、球状型、辐射型和定向多极巨型细胞。在对猫和小猫脑干进行快速高尔基浸染时观察到的这些神经元树突和轴突形态的进一步细胞学细节，扩展了这些巨型神经元的描述类别。在厚塑料切片和随后的薄切片中鉴定出了这些相同的深层DCN巨型细胞。薄切片通过体细胞和树突突触输入的相对密度显示出进一步的神经元差异。所有巨型细胞对基底树突和初级树突都有密集的突触输入，但只有细长多极型和辐射型巨型细胞的体细胞有几乎连续的突触覆盖。许多轴突-树突终末和一些轴突-体细胞终末类似于在DCN梭形细胞上鉴定出的耳蜗终末。同侧耳蜗切除后的瑙塔氏制剂证实了（1）所有巨型细胞类型都有耳蜗输入，以及（2）每种类型的输入模式不同。因此，每种巨型细胞类型都必须处理传入的听觉信号，但每个细胞必须接收略有不同的初级信息。由于每种类型的一些巨型细胞有可观察到的轴突通向背侧听纹，它们都必须将编码的初级信息传递到更高的听觉中枢。
