Autoradiographic localization of neurotransmitter binding sites in the hypoglossal and motor trigeminal nuclei of the rat

Abstract

The hypoglossal and motor trigeminal nuclei contain somatic motoneurons innervating the tongue, jaw, and palate. These two cranial motor nuclei are myotopically organized and contain neurotransmitter binding sites for thyrotropin-releasing hormone, substance P, and serotonin. Quantitative autoradiography was used to localize thyrotropin-releasing hormone, substance P, and serotonin-1A and serotonin-1B binding sites in the hypoglossal and motor trigeminal nuclei and to relate the relative distributions of these binding sites to the myotopic organizations of the two nuclei. In the hypoglossal nucleus, high-to-moderate concentrations of all four binding sites were present in the dorsal and ventromedial subnuclei, whereas low concentrations were noted in the ventrolateral subnucleus. In the motor trigeminal nucleus, high concentrations of serotonin-1B, moderate densities of thyrotropin-releasing hormone, and low levels of substance P and serotonin-1A binding sites were present in both the ventromedial and dorsolateral subnuclei. These observations demonstrate that neurotransmitter binding sites in the hypoglossal and motor trigeminal nuclei are heterogeneously localized and that their distributions correspond to the previously described myotopic organizations of each nucleus.