Axonal projections of the Retzius cells to the dorsal segmental root in the leech Hirudo medicinalis

The presence of RC's axon running in the dorsal root of the leech Hirudo medicinalis was studied by means of electrophysiological and neuroanatomical techniques. Electrical stimulation of the dorsal root gave invariably the antidromic invasion of the Retzius cell. This effect disappears after crushing the dorsal root between the stimulating electrode and the ganglion, and hence is not due to stimulus spread to the nearby posterior root. Anatomical evidence for an axon collateral running in the dorsal root was provided by catecholamine histofluorescence of the axonal branches of the RCs and by Lucifer Yellow intracellular injection into the RCs.

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Electrophysiological stimulation of the dorsal root evoked antidromic invasion of Retzius cells in the leech Hirudo medicinalis, an effect abolished by crushing the root. Catecholamine histofluorescence and Lucifer Yellow intracellular injection provided anatomical evidence for an axon collateral running in the dorsal root.

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