Pattern formation in the developing superior colliculus: ontogeny of the periodic architecture in the intermediate layers

Expression pattern of calcitonin gene-related peptide in the superior colliculus during postnatal development: demonstration of its intrinsic nature and possible roles

Calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP) is a widespread neuropeptide with multiple central and peripheral targets. In an analysis on the expression of this peptide throughout the rat brain during postnatal development, we observed a discrepancy between results obtained by immunohistochemistry and by in situ hybridization. In the superior colliculus (SC), only the immunohistochemical signal could be detected (Terrado et al. [1997] Neuroscience 80:951-970). Here we focus our attention on this structure because the temporal pattern of CGRP immunoreactivity observed in the SC suggested the participation of this peptide in the postnatal maturation of the SC. In the present study, we describe in detail the postnatal development of collicular CGRP-immunoreactive structures and their spatiotemporal relationship with cholinergic modules and definitively demonstrate the local expression of CGRP in the SC. CGRP-immunopositive axons and neurons were distributed within the most ventral part of superficial strata and in the intermediate strata of the SC, showing a peak in staining intensity and density at the end of the first postnatal week. At P14, CGRPergic terminal fibers are arranged in small, clearly defined patches in a complementary manner with respect to the cholinergic modules, which start forming at this stage. By using Western blot and RT-PCR analyses, and by means of injections of antisense oligonucleotides, both the presence of CGRP peptide in the SC and the local expression of alpha-CGRP transcripts in collicular neurons were demonstrated. A possible role of CGRP is discussed in the context of postnatal modular compartmentalization of collicular afferents.

Early establishment of adult-like nigrotectal architecture in the neonatal cat: a double-labeling study using carbocyanine dyes

Virtually nothing is known about the ontogeny of substantia nigra, pars reticulata projections to the midbrain superior colliculus, even though this pathway is critical for the basal ganglia modulation of midbrain-mediated visuomotor behaviors. The present studies used the lipophilic carbocyanine dyes 1,1'-dioctodecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindocarbocyanine perchlorate and 1,1'-dioctodecyl-3,3,3',3'-tetramethylindodi, 4-chlorobenzenesulfonate salt to examine the crossed and uncrossed nigrotectal projections in neonatal cats, from parturition to 14 days postnatal (the technical limits of the tracing technique). In retrograde experiments, paired placement of the dyes in each superior colliculus produced numerous retrogradely-labeled nigrotectal neurons, with the uncrossed neurons far out numbering their crossed counterparts. No double-labeled neurons were observed, indicating that crossed and uncrossed nigrotectal neurons are segregated at birth. In anterograde experiments, dye placements into each substantia nigra, pars reticulata resulted in an iterative series of labeled patches, aligned medial-to-lateral across the intermediate and deep superior colliculus, a pattern reminiscent of the adult. Uncrossed neonatal axons had simple linear morphologies with few branch points; by contrast, crossed axons displayed more extensive terminal arbors that were distributed diffusely throughout the rostrocaudal extent of the contralateral superior colliculus In the final series of experiments, one dye was placed unilaterally in the substantia nigra, pars reticulata, while the second dye was positioned in the predorsal bundle, in order to bilaterally label superior colliculus output neurons. Although both crossed and uncrossed axons appeared to have contacted superior colliculus output neurons, crossed axons preferentially targeted the soma and proximal dendrites, whereas uncrossed terminals were distributed more distally. Throughout this early postnatal period, no significant changes in cellular morphologies or gross modification of terminal projection patterns were observed; however, the presence of growth cones in even the oldest animals studied suggests that the refinement of the nigrotectal projections extends well into postnatal life. Nevertheless, the segregation of crossed and uncrossed nigrotectal neurons into a highly organized afferent mosaic that has established synaptic contacts with superior colliculus output neurons indicates that many of the salient features characterizing nigrotectal projections are established prior to the onset of visual experience.

[Morphology and histogenesis of the colliculi rostrales in cattle]

Based upon macroscopic and light microscopic examinations the development of the superior colliculus of bovine embryos and fetuses with crown-rump lengths (CRL) ranging from 0.8 to 90.0 cm was studied. Macroscopically, the mesencephalon can be recognized for the first time at 0.8 cm CRL, whereas the superior colliculus can be clearly differentiated in embryos of 4.5 cm CRL. The macroscopic features of this brain area have reached adult conditions at 80.0 cm CRL. The light microscopic examination reflected the beginning of layer formation at 0.8 cm CRL, which is induced by the proliferating activity of the ventricular zone. Up to 3.4 cm CRL the primordium of the tectum opticum exhibits still a trilaminate pattern (ventricular-intermediate- and marginal zone), but at 4.5 cm CRL, the formation of the specific tectal layers is marked by the origin of the stratum profundum and intermedium. With the appearance of the tenth layer named stratum opticum at 8.0 cm CRL the laminar pattern corresponds to the characteristics of adult animals.

A simple enzyme histochemical method for the simultaneous demonstration of acetylcholinesterase and monoamine oxidase in fixed-frozen sections

We describe an enzyme histochemical technique for the simultaneous demonstration of acetylcholinesterase (AChE) and monoamine oxidase (MAO) (Types A, B, or A+B) in fixed-frozen sections. Several regions in the mesencephalon and brainstem were examined for both somatic and neuropil labeling. The results obtained are equivalent or superior to those obtained using previous methods for the individual localization of these enzymes. The simultaneous visualization of AChE and MAO in the same section allows the relationship of the two enzymes to be easily assessed with brightfield microscopy.

The clustered cell system is present before formation of the ACh patches in the intermediate gray layer of the cat superior colliculus

Projection neurons from the superior colliculus (SC) to the cuneiform region (CFR) of the midbrain form distinct cell clusters in the intermediate gray layer which precisely overlap the cholinergic fiber patches in this region of the cat SC (Jeon and Mize, J. Comp. Neurol., 337 (1993) 127-150). The acetylcholine (ACh)-containing fiber patches do not express ACh until after birth. It is not known when the cell clusters first appear. In this study, we examined the development of the clusters by retrogradely labeling the cells with a tracer injected into the CFR. Kittens aged from embryonic day E34 to E57 and postnatal day P1 to P14 were perfused with aldehyde fixatives and crystals of the carbocyanine dye DiI were placed into the CFR. After 5- to 8-week incubations, the SC was sectioned and examined using epi-fluorescent microscopy. At E34, very few labeled cells and fibers were present in SC. Between E41 and E46, both labeled cells and fibers were found within the intermediate gray (IGL) and deep gray (DGL) layers of SC. In one E46 case, a few labeled cells were grouped together within the IGL, suggesting the onset of clusters seen at later ages. By E51, DiI labeling produced an obvious pattern of clustered cells. Up to 4 clusters were seen in a single section, each containing 4-12 labeled neurons. By E57, labeled cell clusters were conspicuous in the IGL in caudal sections and the number of cells per cluster was increased. This pattern was also present at birth (P1). Scattered labeled neurons were also found outside the clusters and throughout the deep layers as were fibers innervating this region of SC. In summary, the axonal projections of the IGL clustered cells appear to reach the cuneiform region as early as E46 and are well-developed by E57. The clustering of efferent neurons precedes the formation of cholinergic fiber patches in the cat SC which is first identifiable using ChAT antibodies around the second postnatal week of life.

The mosaic architecture of the superior colliculus

The superior colliculus is a midbrain structure serving visual, multisensory and sensorimotor processing. Throughout various collicular layers, visual afferents are linked together with afferents related to other sensory modalities as well as with afferents from sources not easily subsumed under the term 'sensory'. These inputs are orchestrated in a topographic fashion and led to premotor neurons that are important elements in generating saccadic eye movements and orientation movements of other kinds. Using immunocytochemical techniques to chart the distribution of various substances serving neurotransmission and neuromodulation, it was found that many of them, e.g. acetylcholinesterase (AChE), choline acetyltransferase, the enkephalins, substance P, and parvalbumin, relate to repetitive structural islands, or modules, in the superior colliculus. From studies on the distribution of three further neuroactive substances in rat superior collicular tissue: the calcium binding protein calretinin, the growth and plasticity related protein neuromodulin (GAP-43), and a glutamate receptor of the NMDA-type, we were led to conclude (1) that the intermediate layers of the superior colliculus are composed not of two, but of at least three disjunct types of modules, (2) that not just the intermediate layers but more or less the whole superior colliculus is an assemblage of modules, and (3) that, besides topographic connectivity and laminar structuring, the modules constituting an iterative partitioning represent a third major feature of superior collicular architecture. The origin of the collicular mosaic is considered under an evolutionary perspective, and a hypothesis is presented stating that the pattern of AChE-rich modules on the level of the multimodal collicular layers can be predicted from retinal ganglion cell topography.