Summary
Descending projections from the mesencephalon and superior colliculus to the inferior olive were analyzed by an autoradiographic tracing method. Injections of tritium-labelled leucine were placed in regions which had previously been identified as sources of afferents to the olive. These were located adjacent to the central gray and extended from the rostral red nucleus to the posterior thalamus. Additional injections were made in the superior colliculus. Other injections were placed in the basal ganglia and thalamus. Injections restricted to one side of the central mesencephalon resulted in predominantly ipsilateral labelling of the olive. After injections in the caudo-medial parafascicular and subparafascicular nuclei and rostral nucleus of Darkschewitsch, deposits of grains were observed in the rostral pole of the medial accessory olive and adjacent ventral lamella of the principal olive. The medial accessory olive contained grains into its middle third. More caudal injections which involved the interstitial nucleus of Cajal as well as the nucleus of Darkschewitsch and rostral red nucleus resulted in the dense labelling of the entire principal olive (except the dorsal cap), the entire medial acessory olive (except subnucleus β and the caudo-medial pole) and the caudo-dorsal accessory olive. Injections centered in the caudal magnocellular red nucleus and extending into the rostral parvocellular division labelled the dorsal lamella of the principal olive almost exclusively. When only the caudal part of the red nucleus was involved in the injection, the olive was entirely clear of grains. Minor contralateral distributions were observed in the dorsomedial cell column, the medial tip of the dorsal lamella and in the caudal medial accessory olive. The deep layers of the superior colliculus were found to project strongly to the contralateral medial accessory olive immediately beside subnucleus β and weakly to the same area ipsilaterally.
Four pathways were identified as contributing fibers to the olivary projections. These were the medial longitudinal fasciculus, the medial tegmental tract, the central tegmental tract and tectospinal or tectobulbar fibers. The rubrospinal tract did not contribute projections to the olive. Injections in the caudate nucleus, entopeduncular nucleus and ventral anterior and ventral lateral thalamic nuclei, did not result in any labeling in the olive.
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Abbreviations
- AC:
-
anterior commissure
- Cd:
-
caudate nucleus
- CG:
-
central gray
- CP:
-
cerebral peduncle
- CTT:
-
central tegmental tract
- DAO:
-
dorsal accessory olive
- dc:
-
dorsal cap of Kooy
- dmcc:
-
dorsomedial cell column of the inferior olive
- dlPO:
-
dorsal lamella of the principal olive
- Entop:
-
entopeduncular nucleus
- EW:
-
nucleus of Edinger-Westphal
- FR:
-
fasciculus retroflexus
- Fx:
-
fornix
- GP:
-
globus pallidus
- H:
-
H field of Forel
- HRP:
-
horseradish peroxidase
- IC:
-
inferior colliculus
- INC:
-
interstitial nucleus of Cajal
- Int Cap:
-
internal capsule
- IPN:
-
interpeduncular nucleus
- LRN:
-
lateral reticular nucleus
- MAO:
-
medial accessory olive
- MB:
-
mammillary body
- MGB:
-
medial geniculate body
- MLF:
-
medial longitudinal fasciculus
- MRF:
-
mesencephalic reticular formation
- MTT:
-
medial tegmental tract
- ND:
-
nucleus of Darkschewitsch
- NFF:
-
nucleus of the fields of Forel
- NPC:
-
nucleus of posterior commissure
- NPP:
-
posterior pretectal nucleus
- NRTP:
-
nucleus reticularis tegmenti pontis
- n III:
-
third cranial nerve fibers
- OT:
-
optic tract
- PC:
-
posterior commissure
- PF:
-
parafascicular nucleus
- PG:
-
pontine gray
- PO:
-
principal olive
- PTM:
-
medial pretectal nucleus
- RNp:
-
parvocellular red nucleus
- RN:
-
red nucleus
- RST:
-
rubrospinal tract
- β:
-
subnucleus beta of the inferior olive
- sPf:
-
subparafascicular nucleus
- SC:
-
superior colliculus
- TH:
-
thalamus
- vlPO:
-
ventral lamella of the principal olive
- vlo:
-
ventral lateral outgrowth of the principal olive
- VTA:
-
ventral tegmental area of Tsai
- ZI:
-
zona incerta
- III:
-
nucleus of third cranial nerve
- XII:
-
nucleus of twelfth cranial nerve
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Supported by a grant from the Canadian Medical Research Council to the Group in Neurological Sciences at the Université de Montréal
Supported by a postdoctoral fellowship of the Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques of the Université de Montréal
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Saint-Cyr, J.A., Courville, J. Descending projections to the inferior olive from the mesencephalon and superior colliculus in the cat. Exp Brain Res 45, 333–348 (1982). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01208593
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01208593