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A comparative study of spinal projections to the brain (except cerebellum) in three classes of poikilothermic vertebrates
Author(s) -
Hayle T. H.
Publication year - 1973
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/cne.901490405
Subject(s) - biology , medulla oblongata , brainstem , anatomy , reticular formation , hindbrain , cerebellum , poikilotherm , medulla , spinal nerve , neuroscience , central nervous system , dorsum , paleontology
Abstract Lesions were made at varying levels in the spinal cords of a number of dogfish, rudd, and frogs. After a suitable survival period the resulting fibre degeneration was demonstrated by means of a silver impregnation technique. The findings have provided experimental confirmation of a profuse spinal projection to the reticular formation of the hindbrain in all three classes examined. These fibres were found to project to a constant sector of the reticular formation which closely corresponded not only between individual specimens of the same species, but between the three species, and which was situated ventrolaterally in the medulla oblongata. The density of this dengeneration was always greatest in the caudal brainstem and became progressively less at more rostral levels. All spinal projections to the reticular formation exhibited some degree of bilaterality, including those in specimens with lesions of hemisections or less. A spinotectal pathway was also demonstrated in certain specimens of dogfish. No involvement of cranial nerve nuclei was seen. These findings are discussed.