Taste and tactile responsiveness of neurons in the posterior diencephalon of the channel catfish

Many teleosts possess an enlargement of the ventral diencephalon called the inferior lobe. In ostariophysine species (e.g., carps and catfishes), this region receives ascending fibers from the primary and secondary gustatory centers in the hindbrain. Extracellular unit activity was recorded from identified nuclei in the inferior lobe of the channel catfish to characterize taste and tactile responsiveness from the different nuclei associated with gustatory projections. Taste responses (to amino acids and nucleotides) were recorded from units in the nucleus centralis (nCLI), nucleus lobobulbaris (caudal portion—nLB, rostrolateral portion—rl nLB, and parvicellular portion—nLBp), and lateral thalamic nucleus (nLT), supporting the proposed gustatory role for these nuclei. Tactile responsiveness was distinct between different nuclei in the caudal inferior lobe. Units from the nCLI and nLB had lower spontaneous activity than those from other nuclei, and typically had receptive fields including the whole extraoral body surface, ipsilaterally. Units from the rl nLB and nLBp had receptive fields, often including both oral and extraoral surfaces, bilaterally, but rl nLB receptive fields typically included the whole body, while those from nLBp units were often restricted to the head and mouth. The apparent electrophysiological distinction between these nuclei, combined with their different connectivity patterns, suggest that the gustatory nuclei in the inferior lobe of channel catfish are involved in various different sensory processing mechanisms. © 1993 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.