Premium
Axonal Transport of Fluorescent Carbocyanine Dyes Allows Mapping of Peripheral Nerve Territories in Gingiva
Author(s) -
Sugaya Akira,
Chudler Eric H.,
Byers Margaret R.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
journal of periodontology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.036
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1943-3670
pISSN - 0022-3492
DOI - 10.1902/jop.1995.66.9.817
Subject(s) - buccal administration , molar , gingival sulcus , anatomy , sulcus , junctional epithelium , trigeminal nerve , axoplasmic transport , sensory system , chemistry , pathology , biology , epithelium , medicine , dentistry , neuroscience
S ensory innervation of gingival tissue can cause neurogenic inflammation that depends on the extent of the branching area of the peripheral nerve fibers. We designed the present study to determine whether single trigeminal axons branch to both the buccal and palatal gingiva of maxillary molars of adult rats. Accumulation via retrograde transport of Dil (red) or DiA (green) fluorescent carbocyanine dyes in neurons of trigeminal ganglia was evaluated 7 days after applying one dye to the buccal sulcus and the other to the palatal sulcus. Both dyes were absorbed through the junctional epithelium, and the two sites each labeled similar numbers and sizes of neurons in the lateral zone of the maxillary division (44% from buccal and 46% from palatal gingiva). Double‐labeled neurons had the same size (32.5 ± 6.70 μm, mean circumference ± S.D.) and location as single‐labeled neurons, and they were 9% of the total. This study shows that exogenous dyes can diffuse into mucosa and thereby allow in vivo mapping of sensory nerve branching patterns to several intact tissues per animal. We found that 9% of the labeled cells extended to both the buccal and palatal gingiva. Thus, inflammation that spreads from one gingival region to the other could have a neurogenic mechanism involving trigeminal sensory neurons that extend their peripheral branches to innervate both buccal and palatal gingiva of adult rat molars. J Periodontol 1995; 66:817–821 .