Use of retrograde peroxidase flooding as an effective tool for morphogenic analysis.

Retrograde horseradish peroxidase in conjunction with dimethyl sulfoxide was employed to flood the neonatal rat hypoglossal neuronal somata as well as their proximal and distal dendritic segments. Through such an approach total inundation of the hypoglossal neurons was achieved and as such these flooded cells compared favorably with Golgi preparations made in a parallel study. Such cellular flooding provided for the easy recognition at both the light and electron microscopic level of all hypoglossal neuronal appendages. It is suggested that the use of peroxidase with dimethyl sulfoxide is an effective tool for the analysis of various aspects of morphogenesis, particularly in relation to the distal dendritic segments.