THE SPATIAL-ORGANIZATION OF THE CENTRAL-NERVOUS-SYSTEM OF MESOCESTOIDES-CORTI AS REVEALED BY MICROINJECTION OF CARBOCYANINE DYE

The carbocyanine dyes DiI, DiA and DiO were microinjected into the cer ebral ganglion of intact Mesocestoides corti tetrathyridia to determin e the spatial organisation and connectivity patterns of the CNS, Of th e dyes tested, DiI proved to be the most effective, giving highly fluo rescent and persistent staining of even very fine calibre afferent and efferent nerve fibres. DiI labelling, in conjunction with transmissio n electron microscopy, revealed the nervous system to consist of senso ry endings, directly connected to the cerebral ganglion by elongated c ellular tracts, efferent nerve fibres which innervated the suckers, an d longitudinal nerve cords which travelled along the remainder of the body. (C) 1998 Australian Society for Parasitology. Published by Elsev ier Science Ltd.