Abstract
Introduction
Several animal studies have been conducted for the identification of the mammillotegmental tract (MTT); however, no study has been reported in the human brain.
Methods
In the current study, using diffusion tensor tractography (DTT), we attempted to identify the MTT in the human brain. We recruited 31 healthy volunteers for this study. Diffusion tensor images were acquired using 1.5 T, and the MTT was obtained using a probabilistic tractography method based on a multi-fiber model. Values of fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, and tract volume of the MTT were measured.
Results
MTTs of all subjects, which originated from the mammillary body, ascended posteriorly to the bicommissural level along the third ventricle and then turned caudally and terminated at the tegmentum of the midbrain. No significant differences were observed in terms of fractional anisotropy, mean diffusivity, and tract volume according to hemisphere and sex (P < 0.05). Using DTT, we identified the MTT in the human brain.
Conclusion
We believe that the methodology and results of this study would be helpful in research on the MTT in the human brain.
Reference
Alpeeva EV, Makarenko IG (2007) Perinatal development of mammillotegmental connections in rats. Ontogenez 38:86–93
Shen CL (1983) Efferent projections from the mammillary complex of the guinea pig: an autoradiographic study. Brain Res Bull 11:43–59
Hayakawa T, Zyo K (1990) Fine structure of the lateral mammillary projection to the dorsal tegmental nucleus of gudden in the rat. J Comp Neurol 298:224–236
Hayakawa T, Zyo K (1990) Ultrastructure of the mammillotegmental projections to the ventral tegmental nucleus of gudden in the rat. J Comp Neurol 293:466–475
Vann SD (2010) Re-evaluating the role of the mammillary bodies in memory. Neuropsychologia 48:2316–2327
Hayakawa T, Zyo K (1989) Retrograde double-labeling study of the mammillothalamic and the mammillotegmental projections in the rat. J Comp Neurol 284:1–11
Nauta WJ (1958) Hippocampal projections and related neural pathways to the midbrain in the cat. Brain 81:319–340
Cruce JA (1977) An autoradiographic study of the descending connections of the mammillary nuclei of the rat. J Comp Neurol 176:631–644
Hayakawa T, Zyo K (1985) Afferent connections of gudden’s tegmental nuclei in the rabbit. J Comp Neurol 235:169–181
Guillery RW (1956) Degeneration in the post-commissural fornix and the mamillary peduncle of the rat. J Anat 90:350–370
Nieuwenhuys R, Voogd J, Huijzen CV (2008) The human central nervous system, 4th edn. Springer, New York
Conn PM (2008) Neuroscience in medicine, 3rd edn. NJ, Humana Press, Totowa
Kapil Gupta KW, Cummings S (1997) Human brain coloring workbook. The Princeton Review, New York
Hirsch MC (2000) Dictionary of human neuroanatomy. Springer, London
Vann SD, Aggleton JP (2004) The mammillary bodies: two memory systems in one? Nat Rev Neurosci 5:35–44
Sharp PE, Blair HT, Cho J (2001) The anatomical and computational basis of the rat head-direction cell signal. Trends Neurosci 24:289–294
Marion JF, Yang C, Caqueret A et al (2005) Sim1 and sim2 are required for the correct targeting of mammillary body axons. Development 132:5527–5537
Allen GV, Hopkins DA (1990) Topography and synaptology of mamillary body projections to the mesencephalon and pons in the rat. J Comp Neurol 301:214–231
Morest DK (1961) Connexions of the dorsal tegmental nucleus in rat and rabbit. J Anat 95:229–246
Habas C, Cabanis EA (2007) Anatomical parcellation of the brainstem and cerebellar white matter: a preliminary probabilistic tractography study at 3T. Neuroradiology 49:849–863
Jang SH, Park KA, Ahn SH et al (2009) Transcallosal fibers from corticospinal tract in patients with cerebral infarct. NeuroRehabilitation 24:159–164
Kamali A, Kramer LA, Butler IJ et al (2009) Diffusion tensor tractography of the somatosensory system in the human brainstem: initial findings using high isotropic spatial resolution at 3.0T. Eur Radiol 19:1480–1488
Salamon N, Sicotte N, Alger J et al (2005) Analysis of the brain-stem white-matter tracts with diffusion tensor imaging. Neuroradiology 47:895–902
Schmahmann JD, Pandya DN (2006) Fiber pathways of the brain. Oxford University Press, New York
Stieltjes B, Kaufmann WE, Van Zijl PC et al (2001) Diffusion tensor imaging and axonal tracking in the human brainstem. Neuroimage 14:723–735
Kwon HG, Hong JH, Jang SH (2010) Mammillothalamic tract in human brain: diffusion tensor tractography study. Neurosci Lett 481:51–53
Hong JH, Jang SH (2010) Neural pathway from nucleus basalis of meynert passing through the cingulum in the human brain. Brain research 1346:190-194
Smith SM, Jenkinson M, Woolrich MW et al (2004) Advances in functional and structural MR image analysis and implementation as FSL. Neuroimage 23(Suppl 1):S208–S219
Behrens TE, Berg HJ, Jbabdi S et al (2007) Probabilistic diffusion tractography with multiple fibre orientations: what can we gain? Neuroimage 34:144–155
Behrens TE, Johansen-Berg H, Woolrich MW et al (2003) Non-invasive mapping of connections between human thalamus and cortex using diffusion imaging. Nat Neurosci 6:750–757
Duvernoy HM, Bourgouin P (1999) The human brain: surface, three-dimensional sectional anatomy with MRI, and blood supply. 2nd completely rev. and enl. ed. Wien. Springer, New York
Field TD, Rosenstock J, King EC et al (1978) Behavioral role of the mammillary efferent system. Brain Res Bull 3:451–456
Acknowledgment
This work was supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea Grant funded by the Korean Government (KRF-2008-314-E00173).
Conflict of interest
We declare that we have no conflict of interest.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kwon, H.G., Hong, J.H. & Jang, S.H. Mammillotegmental tract in the human brain: diffusion tensor tractography study. Neuroradiology 53, 623–626 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-011-0858-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-011-0858-y