Contribution of dopamine neurons in the medial zona incerta to the innervation of the central nucleus of the amygdala, horizontal diagonal band of Broca and hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus.

Results of previous studies suggested that incertohypothalamic dopamine (IHDA) neurons located in the medial zona incerta (MZI) project to the central nucleus of the amygdala (cAMY), horizontal diagonal band of Broca (HDB), and paraventricular nucleus (PVN). The overall goal of the present study was to determine the relative contribution of IHDA neurons to the DA innervation of these brain regions. A combined fluorescent and in situ hybridization histochemical procedure was employed to localize the retrograde tracer fluoro-gold (FG) in cells expressing tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) mRNA in the MZI following its iontophoretic injection into either the cAMY, HDB or PVN. For comparison, the numbers of dual labeled FG/TH mRNA neurons in the midbrain were also determined. One week after unilateral injection of FG into the cAMY, cells containing FG+TH mRNA were found in the ipsilateral MZI, substantia nigra zona compacta (SNC) and ventral tegmental area (VTA). The total numbers of cells labeled with FG varied with the size of the injection site, but the ratio of dual labeling in the MZI to that of the SNC-VTA remained constant across animals at approximately 1:6. FG injections into the HDB resulted in a ratio of dual labeled cells in the ipsilateral MZI and VTA of approximately 1:2, but no dual labeled cells were found in the SNC. Dual labeled cells were only found in the ipsilateral MZI in animals receiving FG injections in the PVN. Thus, DA terminals in the PVN originate exclusively from IHDA neurons in the MZI, whereas these neurons provide only a portion of the DA innervation of the cAMY and HDB. The similar distribution of dual labeled cells in the MZI following FG injections into the cAMY, HDB and PVN suggests that perikarya of IHDA neurons projecting to these regions are not organized into distinct groups.