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Title: Localization of glutamatergic, GABAergic, and cholinergic neurons in the brain of the African cichlid fish, Astatotilapia burtoni

Neural communication depends on release and reception of different neurotransmitters within complex circuits that ultimately mediate basic biological functions. We mapped the distribution of glutamatergic, GABAergic, and cholinergic neurons in the brain of the African cichlid fishAstatotilapia burtoniusing in situ hybridization to label vesicular glutamate transporters (vglut1, vglut2.1, vglut3), glutamate decarboxylases (gad1, gad2), and choline acetyltransferase (chat). Cells expressing the glutamatergic markersvgluts 1–3show primarily nonoverlapping distribution patterns, with the most widespread expression observed forvglut2.1, and more restricted expression ofvglut1andvglut3. vglut1is prominent in granular layers of the cerebellum, habenula, preglomerular nuclei, and several other diencephalic, mesencephalic, and rhombencephalic regions.vglut2.1is widely expressed in many nuclei from the olfactory bulbs to the hindbrain, whilevglut3is restricted to the hypothalamus and hindbrain. GABAergic cells show largely overlappinggad1andgad2expression in most brain regions. GABAergic expression dominates nuclei of the subpallial ventral telencephalon, while glutamatergic expression dominates nuclei of the pallial dorsal telencephalon.chat‐expressing cells are prominent in motor cranial nerve nuclei, and some scattered cells lie in the preoptic area and ventral part of the ventral telencephalon. A localization summary of these markers within regions of the conserved social decision‐making network reveals a predominance of either GABAergic or glutamatergic cells within individual nuclei. The neurotransmitter distributions described here in the brain of a single fish species provide an important resource for identification of brain nuclei in other fishes, as well as future comparative studies on circuit organization and function. J. Comp. Neurol. 525:610–638, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

 
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PAR ID:
10235874
Author(s) / Creator(s):
 ;  ;  ;  
Publisher / Repository:
Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Journal of Comparative Neurology
Volume:
525
Issue:
3
ISSN:
0021-9967
Format(s):
Medium: X Size: p. 610-638
Size(s):
p. 610-638
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
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