title: Neurocalcin-immunoreactive neurons in the mammalian dorsal root ganglia, including humans.
abstract: Neurocalcin (NC) is a recently characterized EF-hand calcium-binding protein present in a discrete population of sensory neurons and their peripheral mechanoreceptors, but its presence in peripheral nervous system neurons other than in the rat is still unknown. The present study was designed to investigate the occurrence of NC in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG) of several mammalian species (horse, buffalo, cow, sheep, pig, dog, and rat), including humans. DRG were fixed, embedded in paraffin, and processed for immunohistochemistry using a polyclonal antibody against NC. The size of the immunoreactive neurons was measured. In all species examined, NC immunoreactivity (IR) was restricted to neurons but the percentage, as well as the size of the immunoreactive neurons, varied among different species. As a rule, small neurons (diameter <20 microm) lack NC IR. In some species (pig, dog, buffalo, cow), only the largest neurons showed IR, whereas in others (sheep, horse, rat, and humans) they covered the entire range of neuron sizes. The pattern of immunostaining was cytoplasmic, although in some species (cow and buffalo), it formed a peripheral "ring." The present results demonstrate that mammalian DRG contain a subpopulation of NC-positive neurons, which varies from one species to another. Based on the neuron size, the possible function of the NC-containing neurons is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Morfologia y Biologia Celular, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Oviedo, Spain.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Galeano
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Germanà
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Abbate
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Calvo
authors.forename: F J
authors.initials: FJ
authors.lastname: Naves
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Hidaka
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Germanà
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Vega
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D002417:Cattle; D002452:Cell Count; D048429:Cell Size; D004285:Dogs; D019084:Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect; D005727:Ganglia, Spinal / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D006736:Horses / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008161:Lumbosacral Region; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D051596:Neurocalcin; D009474:Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D044169:Receptors, Calcium-Sensing; D012418:Ruminants / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D013045:Species Specificity; D013552:Swine / Q000033:anatomy & histology
chemical_list: D002135:Calcium-Binding Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D051596:Neurocalcin; D044169:Receptors, Calcium-Sensing; C496690:Vsnl1 protein, rat