title: A comparative study of prenatal development in the olfactory bulb, neocortex and hippocampal region of the precocial mouse Acomys cahirinus and rat.
abstract: Unlike the remainder of the rodent subfamily Muridae, Acomys cahirinus (the 'spiny' mouse) is born in a precocial state after a long (39 day) gestation. In this paper, the development of the olfactory bulb, neocortex and hippocampal formation of Acomys from prenatal days 14-34 was examined and the rate of maturation compared with that of its cousin, the laboratory rat (Rattus norvegicus). At the earliest stages examined, Acomys was approximately 2 days less mature than the same post-conception aged rat. The difference between the two species increased: Acomys at 28 days postconception resembled the 22-day rat. By the end of gestation, Acomys and the rat were in a relatively similar developmental state. Therefore, Acomys exhibits a quite different timetable of early maturation which includes a protracted period of relatively slow growth during mid-gestation. As such, it offers many benefits as a subject for studies of both early ontogenesis and the mechanisms which result in species differences.
authors: Department of Psychology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville 22903.
authors: P C
authors: PC
authors: Brunjes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002540:Cerebral Cortex / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D005314:Embryonic and Fetal Development; D005865:Gestational Age; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D051379:Mice; D009830:Olfactory Bulb / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology*; D051381:Rats