Some forebrain connections of the gustatory system in the goldfish Carassius Auratus visualized by separate DiI application to the hypothalamic inferior lobe and the torus lateralis

• Published in: Journal of comparative neurology (1911) 1998-05, Vol.394 (2), p.152-170
• Main Authors: Rink, Elke, Wullimann, Mario F.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Brain Mapping - methods; Carassius auratus; Carbocyanines; Diencephalon - physiology; Fluorescent Dyes; Freshwater; Goldfish - physiology; gustation; hypothalamus; Hypothalamus - physiology; Neural Pathways - physiology; posterior tuberculum; Prosencephalon - physiology; Taste - physiology; teleost visual system; topography
• ISSN: 0021-9967; 1096-9861
• DOI: 10.1002/(SICI)1096-9861(19980504)394:2<152::AID-CNE2>3.0.CO;2-1

The neuroanatomical connections of the diencephalic torus lateralis and inferior lobe of the goldfish (Carassius auratus) were studied by retrograde and anterograde labeling with the carbocyanine dye DiI. Both structures have afferents originating in the central zone of the dorsal telencephalic area as well as in the supracommissural nucleus of the ventral telencephalic area, and in the secondary gustatory, tertiary gustatory, and posterior thalamic nuclei. Both structures investigated have efferents to the tertiary gustatory and posterior thalamic nuclei, as well as to the dorsal hypothalamus (dorsal hypothalamic neuropil) and superior reticular formation. The torus lateralis receives additional afferents from the secondary general visceral nucleus and, sparsely, from the dorsal tegmental nucleus. The inferior lobe receives additional afferents from the medial zone of the dorsal telencephalic area, as well as from the suprachiasmatic, posterior pretectal, central posterior thalamic, caudal preglomerular, two tegmental nuclei (T1 and T2), corpus mamillare, and, sparsely, from the cerebellar valvula. The inferior lobe has additional efferents to the dorsal and ventral thalamus and subglomerular nucleus. The lateral torus and inferior lobe are also mutually interconnected. The lateral torus and inferior lobe map topographically onto the vagal‐related (intraoral) or onto the facial‐related (extraoral) portions, respectively, of both the secondary and tertiary gustatory nuclei. Because the posterior thalamic nucleus is reciprocally connected with the lateral torus and inferior lobe and is further known to project in turn to the area doralis telencephali, it likely represents a quaternary gustatory projection nucleus to the telencephalon in cyprinids. Whereas the lateral torus seems to be exclusively involved with gustatory and general visceral systems, the inferior lobe has inputs from additional sensory (e.g., octavolateralis, visual) systems, and, thus, likely represents a multisensory integration center. J. Comp. Neurol. 394:152–170, 1998. © 1998 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.