title: The cytoarchitectonic and TH-immunohistochemical characterization of the dopamine cell groups in the substantia nigra, ventral tegmental area and retrorubral field in a bat (Artibeus planirostris).
abstract: The dopamine (DA) neurons of the retrorubral field (RRF - A8), the substantia nigra (SN - A9), and the ventral tegmental area (VTA - A10) have been implicated in motor regulation, reward, aversion, cognition, and several neuropsychiatric disorders. A series of studies have identified subdivisions of these cell groups in rodents, but these cell groups have not been well described in bats. An understanding of the motor system organization in bats would provide a context for comparing motor systems across rodent, primate, and bat phylogenies. The aim of this work was to determine whether typical subdivisions of RRF, SN, and VTA are present in Artibeus planirostris, a common frugivorous bat species found throughout South America. Coronal and sagittal sections of bat brain were subjected to Nissl staining and TH immunohistochemistry. The organizational pattern of the nuclei in A. planirostris showed a conspicuous tail in the SN, which has been not described in bats to date, and also contained a well-defined substantia nigra reticulata (SNR) not previously reported in microbats. This work provides for the first time a morphometric analysis of DA neurons in a microchiropteran species, enabling a comparative investigation of vertebrates. Our analysis revealed an apparent phylogenetic stability in these structures, although the SN tail might represent a functional specialization in this species.
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Helder Henrique Alves
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Medeiros
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Melquisedec Abiaré Dantas
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Santana
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Mariana Dias
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Leite
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luisa Alves Pereira
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Aquino
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Federal University of Pernambuco, 50670-901 Recife, PE, Brazil.
authors.forename: Marília Abero Sá
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: de Barros
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Nayana Tânia
authors.initials: NT
authors.lastname: Galvão
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Fernando Vagner Lobo
authors.initials: FV
authors.lastname: Ladd
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Judney Cley
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Cavalcante
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Miriam Stela Maris Oliveira
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Costa
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology/Laboratory of Neurochemical Studies, Biosciences Center, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil.
authors.forename: Jeferson Souza
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Cavalcante
authors.affiliation: Department of Morphology/Laboratory of Neuroanatomy, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, 59072-970 Natal, RN, Brazil. Electronic address: expeditojr@cb.ufrn.br.
authors.forename: Expedito Silva
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Nascimento
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002685:Chiroptera / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000378:metabolism*; D059290:Dopaminergic Neurons / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D066265:Midbrain Reticular Formation / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D013378:Substantia Nigra / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase / Q000378:metabolism*; D017557:Ventral Tegmental Area / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase
keywords: Bat brain; Dopamine; Retorubral field; Substantia nigra; Tyrosine hydroxylase; Ventral tegmental area; immunohistochemistry