[Anatomic connections between homotopic transplant of fetal cortical tissue and optic thalamus in adult rats]

Boll Soc Ital Biol Sper. 1991 Apr;67(4):379-85.
[Article in Italian]

Abstract

The present research was planned to study the possibility to reconstruct a damaged neural circuitry by replacing the injured neurons with homotopic fetal cells. In adult rats the motor cortex was injured with intracortical injection of kainic acid solution. After a delay of 10-14 days, a block of cerebral cortex of fetal rats (E17) was transplanted in the cavity produced by the kainic acid in the motor cortex. After 2-3 months, WGA-HRP solution was injected in the thalamus of the host and both anterogradely labeled fiber terminals and retrogradely labeled somata cells were researched in the transplanted cortex. The results showed that: 1) the host thalamus projects to the transplanted cortex with less density compared to the host cortex surrounding the transplant; 2) the thalamic projection to the transplant is not topographically organized whereas the projection to the host cortex is; 3) the transplant was virtually void of a significant projection to the thalamus of the host. In conclusion, the results offer direct evidence that the reconstruction of an injured thalamocortical circuitry of adult rat is not possible by transplanting homotopic fetal neurons.

Publication types

  • English Abstract

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Brain Tissue Transplantation*
  • Fetal Tissue Transplantation / physiology*
  • Fetus
  • Motor Cortex / drug effects
  • Motor Cortex / pathology
  • Motor Cortex / transplantation*
  • Necrosis / chemically induced
  • Rats
  • Thalamus / transplantation*