title: Nucleus magnocellularis and nucleus laminaris in Belgian Waterslager and normal strain canaries.
abstract: Belgian Waterslager (BWS) canaries are characterized by a mean 30% loss of hair cells in the basilar papilla compared to other canaries, and a corresponding increase in behavioral auditory thresholds. In spite of the large number of missing and damaged sensory cells, there is on average only a 12% reduction in the number of fibers in the VIIIth nerve. In this study, we examined cell number and size, and volume of auditory nuclei, specifically in nucleus magnocellularis and nucleus laminaris in Belgian Waterslager canaries. While the overall anatomical structure and organization of these nuclei and the total number of cells in the non-BWS and BWS canaries were comparable, BWS canaries showed a significant decrease in the volume of the auditory nuclei that was attributed to a reduction in cell size. These results provide further evidence in favor of a role of the sensory epithelium in the maintenance of central auditory structures.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park 20742, USA. mk145@umail.umd.edu
authors.forename: M Fabiana
authors.initials: MF
authors.lastname: Kubke
authors.forename: Michael L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Dent
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hodos
authors.forename: Catherine E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Carr
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Dooling
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000473:pathology; D002171:Canaries / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D002452:Cell Count; D048429:Cell Size; D017626:Cochlear Nucleus / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000166:cytology; D006198:Hair Cells, Auditory / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000166:cytology; D006316:Hearing Loss, High-Frequency / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary; D006319:Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary; D013045:Species Specificity