THE INNERVATION OF THE MAMMALIAN ADRENAL-GLAND

Early conflicting reports and the lack of sensitive anatomical methods have led to an oversimplified view of adrenal gland innervation. It w as hot until the introduction of nerve fibre tracing techniques in the mid-1970s that the true complexity of adrenal innervation began to em erge. The first part of this article comprises a brief review of these and other relevant reports dealing with both medullary and cortical i nnervation. In the second part a detailed account is given of the work undertaken in Rex Coupland's Department relating to the innervation o f the rodent and primate adrenal medulla using a retrograde fluorescen t tracer technique. It was concluded that, in all 3 species studied, t he adrenal medulla receives a sympathetic and parasympathetic efferent and an afferent innervation. The possible interrelationship between n eural control of cortical and medullar secretions is discussed briefly .