R. Orr et L. Marson, IDENTIFICATION OF CNS NEURONS INNERVATING THE RAT PROSTATE - A TRANSNEURONAL TRACING STUDY USING PSEUDORABIES VIRUS, Journal of the autonomic nervous system, 72(1), 1998, pp. 4-15
The spinal and brain neurons that innervate the rat prostate were iden
tified using the transneuronal tracing technique. Three groups of rats
were prepared: (1) nerve intact, (2) bilateral pelvic nerve cut and r
ight hypogastric nerve cut and (3) bilateral hypogastric nerve cut and
right pelvic nerve cut. Pseudorabies virus (PRV) was injected into th
e ventral prostate on the left side. After 2-4 days, the rats were per
fused transcardially under deep anesthesia and the spinal cord and bra
in removed. PRV-labelled cells were identified using immunohistochemis
try. After 3 days survival, sympathetic and parasympathetic preganglio
nic neurons were labelled with PRV. In addition, spinal interneurons w
ere found in the dorsal gray commissure (DGC) of T13-S1. Rats with onl
y one hypogastric nerve intact resulted in spinal labelling of sympath
etic preganglionic neurons in the DGC and ipsilateral intermediolatera
l cell column (IML). In addition, many spinal interneurons were found
from L1 to L6 in the medial gray. Rats with only one pelvic nerve inta
ct displayed PRV-labelled cells in the parasympathetic preganglionic n
ucleus ipsilateral to the injection site. Spinal interneurons were pre
sent in the region of the IML and in the medial cord. In the brain, ar
eas predominately labelled with PRV included the nucleus gigantocellul
aris and paragigantocellularis, raphe magnus, raphe pallidus, A5, Barr
ington's nucleus, central say, ventral tegmental area, the paraventric
ular nucleus of the hypothalamus, lateral hypothalamus and medial preo
ptic area. These data demonstrate the sympathetic and parasympathetic
spinal circuits and demonstrate the overlap of supraspinal innervation
of the spinal interneurons. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights
reserved.