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Morphology of neuropeptide Y‐immunoreactive neurons and fibers in human prefrontal cortex during prenatal and postnatal development
Author(s) -
Uylings Harry B.M.,
Delalle Ivana
Publication year - 1997
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9861(19970324)379:4<523::aid-cne5>3.0.co;2-4
Subject(s) - subplate , biology , axon , neuropeptide y receptor , neuroscience , cerebral cortex , population , cortex (anatomy) , anatomy , neuropeptide , biochemistry , receptor , demography , sociology
The subplate and marginal zone are prominent transient zones of the developing cerebral wall and contain a variety of neuropeptide Y‐immunoreactive (NPY‐ir) cells. This study investigates morphological maturation as well as regression and/or transformation of NPY‐ir neurons in the transient compartments and the cortical plate of the human frontal cortex. The most prominent NPY‐ir neuronal population is that of NPY‐ir subplate neurons. They exhibited features of all subplate neuronal types reported in Golgi‐impregnated sections, with the exception of the pyramidal type. The NPY‐ir subplate neurons were the largest of all NPY‐ir neurons, but their size regressed rather sharply between 1 month after birth and 2 years. In the NPY‐ir subplate neurons and in the NPY‐ir Cajal‐Retzius cells of the marginal zone, signs of degeneration were observed between 36 postovulatory weeks and about 9 months after birth. Only a few subpial granular layer cells were NPY positive, and they exhibited degeneration‐like features, such as cytoplasmic vacuolization, as early as 23 postovulatory weeks. However, NPY‐ir neurons continued to be present in the adult counterparts of the subplate and marginal zone, i.e., gyral white matter and layer I, respectively. Across cortical layers II‐VI, NPY‐ir neurons had the hallmarks of all aspinous short‐axon types, with the exception of the neurogliaform and the chandelier neuronal types. Some signs of degeneration were also observed among a few cortical NPY‐ir neurons around birth. Unlike the NPY‐ir subplate neurons, the general development of cortical NPY‐ir neurons did not show an obvious decline in neuronal size and was similar to the pattern in Golgi‐staining. J. Comp. Neurol. 379:523–540, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.