RT Journal Article
T1 Structural, morphometric and immunohistochemical study of the rabbit accessory olfactory bulb
A1 Rodríguez Villamayor, Paula
A1 Cifuentes Martínez, José Manuel
A1 Quintela Arias, Luis Ángel
A1 Barcia Vieitez, Ramiro
A1 Sánchez Quinteiro, Pablo
K1 Accessory olfactory bulb
K1 Vomeronasal system
K1 Immunohistochemistry
K1 Rabbits
K1 Morphometry
K1 Sexual dimorphism
AB The accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) is the first neural integrative centre of the vomeronasal system (VNS), which is associated primarily with the detection of semiochemicals. Although the rabbit is used as a model for the study of chemocommunication, these studies are hampered by the lack of knowledge regarding the topography, lamination, and neurochemical properties of the rabbit AOB. To fill this gap, we have employed histological stainings: lectin labelling with Ulex europaeus (UEA-I), Bandeiraea simplicifolia (BSI-B4), and Lycopersicon esculentum (LEA) agglutinins, and a range of immunohistochemical markers. Anti-G proteins Gαi2/Gαo, not previously studied in the rabbit AOB, are expressed following an antero-posterior zonal pattern. This places Lagomorpha among the small groups of mammals that conserve a double-path vomeronasal reception. Antibodies against olfactory marker protein (OMP), growth-associated protein-43 (GAP-43), glutaminase (GLS), microtubule-associated protein-2 (MAP-2), glial fibrillary-acidic protein (GFAP), calbindin (CB), and calretinin (CR) characterise the strata and the principal components of the BOA, demonstrating several singular features of the rabbit AOB. This diversity is accentuated by the presence of a unique organisation: four neuronal clusters in the accessory bulbar white matter, two of them not previously characterised in any species (the γ and δ groups). Our morphometric study of the AOB has found significant differences between sexes in the numerical density of principal cells, with larger values in females, a pattern completely opposite to that found in rats. In summary, the rabbit possesses a highly developed AOB, with many specific features that highlight the significant role played by chemocommunication among this species
PB Springer
SN 1863-2661
YR 2020
FD 2020
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10347/37915
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10347/37915
LA eng
NO Villamayor, P.R., Cifuentes, J.M., Quintela, L. et al. Structural, morphometric and immunohistochemical study of the rabbit accessory olfactory bulb. Brain Struct Funct 225, 203–226 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-019-01997-4
NO This version of the article has been accepted for publication, after peer review (when applicable) and is subject to Springer Nature’s AM terms of use, but is not the Version of Record and does not reflect post-acceptance improvements, or any corrections. The Version of Record is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00429-019-01997-4
NO This work was supported by a University of Santiago de Compostela grant [1551-8179] to PSQ. The authors thank COGAL SL (Pontevedra, Spain) for providing most of the animals employed in this study. Special thanks are due to Alejandro García MD, DVM for his artistic drawing of the AOB topography. We also thank Professor Ignacio Salazar, for his support and constant encouragement during his fruitful period as Head of the Department of Anatomy.
DS Minerva
RD 28 abr 2026