Cellular expression of H and B antigens in the rat olfactory system during development.
Developmental expression of H and B antigens in the rat olfactory system was studied from the embryonic day 14 up to the postnatal day 30. The H antigen was detected in the olfactory and vomeronasal epithelia as early as fetal day 14, whereas the B antigen first appeared 2 days later. The anti-H reagent reacted strongly with sensory receptors and weakly with supporting cells in both epithelia, whereas the anti-B reagent was specific for olfactory receptors. In the main olfactory epithelium, the H antigen was expressed from fetal day 19 by most of the receptor cells, whereas the B determinant was expressed from fetal day 16 to postnatal day 3 by only a few neuroreceptors mostly located near the epithelial surface. After the postnatal day 3, B positive neurons increased in number from the periphery toward the deeper mucosal layers and they were distributed over 3/4 of the epithelial thickness in 15- and 30-day-old rats. In the main olfactory bulb, a widespread glomerular B staining with variable binding intensity between adjacent glomeruli was already observed at birth. The vomeronasal receptor cells and their axon terminals in the accessory olfactory bulb exhibited a comparable developmental expression of the B antigen. Results suggest that the B antigen could be regarded as a marker of neuronal maturation of both the olfactory and vomeronasal receptor cells; moreover, its first appearance in the receptor cells might be temporally related to the formation of synapses between receptor axons and deutoneurons in the bulb.
Astic
L
L
Laboratoire de Physiologie Neurosensorielle, CNRS-Université Claude-Bernard/Lyon, France.
Le Pendu
J
J
Mollicone
R
R
Saucier
D
D
Oriol
R
R
D000017:ABO Blood-Group System / Q000276:immunology*; D000375:Aging / Q000276:immunology*; D000818:Animals; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000196:embryology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology*; D009831:Olfactory Mucosa / Q000196:embryology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology*; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains
D000017:ABO Blood-Group System