Postnatal development of the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus : neurons and synapses

1. In this report the postnatal differentiation of the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (VMN) was studied. The main maturational changes detected at the fine structural level occurred between 10 and 20 days of postnatal life. 2. In 5-day-old rats the majority of neurons was undifferentiated, with r...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cellular and molecular neurobiology 1992-04, Vol.12 (2), p.121-129
Main Authors: POZZO MILLER, L. D, AOKI, A
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anatomy
Animals
Biological and medical sciences
Cell Differentiation
Central nervous system
Female
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Male
Microscopy, Electron
Neurons - cytology
Organelles - ultrastructure
Rats
Rats, Inbred Strains - growth & development
Synapses - ultrastructure
Ventromedial Hypothalamic Nucleus - growth & development
Ventromedial Hypothalamic Nucleus - ultrastructure
Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs
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Summary:1. In this report the postnatal differentiation of the hypothalamic ventromedial nucleus (VMN) was studied. The main maturational changes detected at the fine structural level occurred between 10 and 20 days of postnatal life. 2. In 5-day-old rats the majority of neurons was undifferentiated, with rudimentary cytoplasmic organelles. Dendritic profiles presented an empty appearance due to an electron-lucent matrix and scarce content of organelles. 3. At 10 days there was a significant proliferation of cytoplasmic organelles in the perikaryon, mainly of those involved in protein biosynthesis as the rough endoplasmic reticulum (RER) and the Golgi complex. 4. After 20 days of age the VMN neurons acquired the cytological appearance of adult neurons, with well-organized RER, Golgi complexes, and pleomorphic mitochondria. Concurrent with these changes, there was a marked development of other organelles in the neuropil, which was accompanied by an increase in synaptic density and differentiation of their subsynaptic structures.
ISSN:0272-4340
1573-6830
DOI:10.1007/BF00713366