A. Brusco et al., DEVELOPMENT OF SEROTONERGIC INNERVATION OF THE CHICK-EMBRYO TECTUM OPTICUM, International journal of developmental neuroscience, 13(8), 1995, pp. 835-843
This paper describes the development of the serotonergic innervation o
f the chick tectum opticum as revealed by an immunohistochemical metho
dology. The development of this innervation was previously described s
imply as the formation of an irregular network of serotonergic fibers
that gradually invades the organ and increases in density. Our results
show that the developmental pattern of serotonergic innervation diffe
rs significantly through the distinct tectal layers and that it progre
sses through a characteristic temporospatial pattern related to the la
mination process. These findings support the idea that the concept of
laminar segregation can be applied to describe the development of the
serotonergic innervation. On the other hand, it is clear that the exis
tence of a typical ordered developmental pattern of innervation makes
it possible to detect embryonic or post-hatching alterations. Thus, th
e tectal serotonergic innervation could be used as a suitable model to
investigate possible plastic changes in experimental conditions.