Origin and course of nerves immunoreactive for calcitonin gene-related peptide surrounding the femoral artery in rat.
Appreciation of anatomic relationships between perivascular nerve fibers and blood vessels is essential in reconstructive surgery. We examined the origin and neural connections of perivascular nerve fibers containing calcitonin gene-related peptide surrounding the femoral artery that regulate vascular tone. We used immunohistochemistry, denervation, and retrograde labeling methods. Peptide-immunoreactive fibers surrounding the femoral artery formed a complex network, with numerous small fibers extending from nerve fiber bundles located in the perivascular connective tissue. In middle and distal arterial segments, these fibers originated from the femoral nerve, the artery's main accompanying nerve. More proximally, fibers arose from the genitofemoral nerve and sympathetic nerves. Nerve branches terminating in various arterial segments had origins corresponding to those of somatic sensory nerve fibers, although pathways innervating the femoral artery took different courses.
Ishikawa
Hirohiko
H
Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Nagoya University Graduate School and Faculty of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.
Honda
Takashi
T
Toriyama
Kazuhiro
K
Torii
Shuhei
S
Sugiura
Yasuo
Y
D000818:Animals; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D002452:Cell Count; D005260:Female; D005263:Femoral Artery / Q000294:innervation*; D005267:Femoral Nerve / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000737:chemistry / Q000601:surgery; D005728:Ganglia, Sympathetic / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D009412:Nerve Fibers / Q000737:chemistry*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018998:Wheat Germ Agglutinin-Horseradish Peroxidase Conjugate / Q000378:metabolism
D018998:Wheat Germ Agglutinin-Horseradish Peroxidase Conjugate; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide