title: Octopamine in the developing nervous system of the pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis L.
abstract: Development of the octopaminergic system in the pond snail, Lymnaea stagnalis, was investigated by means of immunocytochemistry and radioenzymatic assay. The earliest octopamine-immunoreactive neurons appear at a late embryonic stage (E85) of development following metamorphosis. At this moment of development, the adult-like pattern of distribution and projection (arborization) characteristics of octopamine-immunoreactive neurone can already be observed. During hatching and postembryonic (juvenile) development the number of labelled neurons increases only within the ventro-medial cell groups of the cerebral ganglia, whereas the extent of varicose axon arborization of the labelled neurons increases gradually. No peripheral projections of the embryonic and postembryonic octopamine-immunoreactive neurons were observed. The postembryonic increase in number of immunoreactive neurons and development of axonal arborization is accompanied by a rapid, exponential enhancement of octopamine content of Lymnaea CNS, as detected radioenzymatically. A possible role of the octopaminergic neurons in the regulation of certain physiological function(s), active only from a late stage of embryonic development, is suggested.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Zoology, Balaton Limnological Research Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Tihany, Hungary.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Elekes
authors.forename: E E
authors.initials: EE
authors.lastname: Voronezhskaya
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hiripi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Eckert
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rapus
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002490:Central Nervous System / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D017952:Ganglia, Invertebrate / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008195:Lymnaea / Q000196:embryology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D009474:Neurons / Q000378:metabolism; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents / Q000378:metabolism; D009655:Octopamine / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents; D009655:Octopamine