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Structural, morphometric and immunohistochemical study of the rabbit accessory olfactory bulb

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Abstract

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.

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Acknowledgements

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.

Funding

This work was supported by a University of Santiago de Compostela grant [1551-8179] to PSQ.

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  1. Department of Anatomy, Animal Production and Clinical Veterinary Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Santiago de Compostela, Av Carballo Calero s/n, 27002, Lugo, Spain

    Paula R. Villamayor, Jose Manuel Cifuentes & Pablo Sanchez-Quinteiro

  2. Department of Animal Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Santiago de Compostela, Lugo, Spain

    Luis Quintela

  3. Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Veterinary, University of Santiago de Compostela, Lugo, Spain

    Ramiro Barcia

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  1. Paula R. Villamayor
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  2. Jose Manuel Cifuentes
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  3. Luis Quintela
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  5. Pablo Sanchez-Quinteiro
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Correspondence to Pablo Sanchez-Quinteiro.

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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

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