Ml. Vizuete et al., CHANGES IN NEUROTRANSMITTERS IN SUPERIOR COLLICULUS AFTER NEONATAL ENUCLEATION - BIOCHEMICAL AND IMMUNOCYTOCHEMICAL STUDIES, Neuroscience, 56(1), 1993, pp. 165-176
The turnover rate of dopamine and serotonin and the level of glutamate
in superior colliculus are increased in adult, neonatally enucleated
rats compared with normal control adult animals. Moreover, immunocytoc
hemical data showed that the stratum zonale and the stratum griseum su
perficiale of the superior colliculus, specifically of bienucleated ra
ts, display a dense network of serotonin-immunoreactive fibres, sugges
ting an increase in serotoninergic innervation. At the electron micros
cope level, serotonin-immunoreactive fibres and large postsynaptic ser
otonin-immunoreactive profiles exhibiting microtubules could be observ
ed in the stratum zonale and the stratum griseum superficiale of the b
ienucleated rat. These results suggest that neonatal enucleation produ
ces reorganization of serotoninergic and glutamatergic inputs. It is p
ossible that serotonin may exert a profound influence upon collicular
function.