Dinopoulos A
Department of Anatomy, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Thessaloniki, Greece.
Eur J Neurosci. 1994 Mar 1;6(3):374-80. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.1994.tb00280.x.
Horseradish peroxidase unilateral injections in various neocortical areas (prefrontal, somatosensory, auditory, visual) of the hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) brain resulted in labelling of nuclei in the ipsilateral thalamus known from studies in other species and in the hedgehog to project to these areas. However, injections in the motor area resulted in retrograde and anterograde labelling of nuclei in both the ipsilateral and contralateral thalamus. These nuclei included the ventral lateral nucleus (VL), the intralaminar nuclei (ILN), the mediodorsal nucleus (MD) and midline nuclei. Large unilateral injections located mainly laterally in the thalamus labelled cells, contralaterally, in the ventral lateral geniculate nucleus, the intergeniculate leaflet and the reticular nucleus of the thalamus, but never in VL, ILN and MD. The present results confirm previously described bilateral thalamocortical projections from the VL to the somatosensorimotor area in this species (Regidor and Divac, Brain Behav. Evol., 39, 265-269, 1992) and in addition demonstrate that (i) bilateral thalamocortical projections are established preferentially with the motor area, (ii) several nuclei are involved in such connections, (iii) these connections are reciprocal and topographically organized, and (iv) labelling in the contralateral thalamus observed in the present study is not a result of transneuronal transport of the tracer through thalamothalamic connections. This organization is unique among mammals and supports previous anatomical and electrophysiological findings, on the basis of which it has been suggested that the hedgehog retains a primitive character in neocortical and thalamic evolution.
在刺猬（刺猬 Erinaceus europaeus）大脑的不同新皮质区域（前额叶、体感、听觉、视觉）进行辣根过氧化物酶单侧注射，结果显示，在同侧丘脑出现了细胞核标记，这些细胞核在其他物种以及刺猬的研究中已知会投射到这些区域。然而，在运动区域注射导致同侧和对侧丘脑的细胞核出现逆行和顺行标记。这些细胞核包括腹外侧核（VL）、板内核（ILN）、背内侧核（MD）和中线核。主要位于丘脑外侧的大型单侧注射标记了对侧腹外侧膝状核、膝间小叶和丘脑网状核中的细胞，但从未标记 VL、ILN 和 MD 中的细胞。目前的结果证实了先前描述的该物种中从 VL 到体感运动区域的双侧丘脑皮质投射（Regidor 和 Divac，《脑行为与进化》，39，265 - 269，1992），此外还表明：（i）双侧丘脑皮质投射优先与运动区域建立；（ii）多个细胞核参与此类连接；（iii）这些连接是相互的且按拓扑结构组织；（iv）本研究中在对侧丘脑中观察到的标记不是示踪剂通过丘脑 - 丘脑连接进行跨神经元运输的结果。这种组织在哺乳动物中是独特的，并支持先前的解剖学和电生理学发现，基于这些发现有人提出刺猬在新皮质和丘脑进化中保留了原始特征。
