Calbindin D-28K in the dopaminergic mesocortical projection of a monkey (Aotus trivirgatus).

Injections of fluorescent dyes were made in the prefrontal and motor cortex of owl monkeys and retrogradely labeled neurons in the mesencephalon were analyzed for tyrosine hydroxylase and calbindin-D28K immunostaining. Numbers of mesocortical dopaminergic neurons in the dorsal substantia nigra compacta and in the ventral tegmental area also contain calbindin-D28K. This cortically projecting calbindin-D28K containing subpopulation of the dopaminergic mesencephalic cells may be characterized by different electrophysiological properties and a lesser vulnerability to cell death.