Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat Hippocampus (Histological Study)
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MJMR, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2024, pages (224-225). Kamel et al., Research Article Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat Hippocampus (Histological Study) Maher M. Kamel, Mohamed M. Abdelaleem, Moustafa A. Saad and Sayed F. El-Sheikh Department of Anatomy, Minia Faculty of Medicine Abstract The differentiation of the hippocampus starts in the subiculum and proceeds towards the Ammon's horn and the dentate gyrus is the last structure to be formed. Lamination of the subiculum starts on E71 and progress to the Ammon's horn on E71; CA7 is formed, while the CA3 is not completely developed. On E71, the CA3 is completed with formation the ectal limb of dentate gyrus while the endal limb is still unformed and appears as a ball-like mass of cells. Between E02-P7, Ammon's horn shows agreat increase in length as acurved C-shape structure. The endal limb of dentate gyrus appears prenatally and develops rapidly to become morphologically similar to the ectal limb by P1. During the first month of development, there are increases in length of Ammon's horn, dentate gyrus size and size of both pyramidal cells and granule cells. In adult, the length of Ammon's horn is markedly large and the hippocampal subfields are prominent. Key Words: Development, Hippocampus, Ammon's horn and dentate gyrus Introduction constitute the circuit of emotion. In 7180 Pallium (the cerebral cortex) coats the Maclean named this circuit the "limbic surface of cerebral hemispheres. The system"(72). cerebral cortex is divided according the development level, structure and function This study aimed to identify the into six- layered neocortex and three- morphological changes of both layered allocortex. The hippocampus is the cornuAmmonis and dentate gyrus in best example for allocortex. The consequent ages during embryological and periallocortex or mesocortex are used to postnatal development and analyze these mark the transitional zone between the differences in a functional context. It is neocortex and allocrtex(1). necessary to have the anatomical base of this region by simple microscopic study of The hippocampus was first described by the rat hippocampus using rapid and easy Arantius (7811) in his book "De method (H & E).This method can identify HumanoFoetu" the structure in the temporal layers, pyramidal cells of cornuammonis horn of the lateral ventricles that looks and granule cells of dentate gyrus. likehippocampus (sea horse) or bombycinusvermiscandidus (white silk Materials and methods worm),(78). Twenty four pairs of male and female albino rats were used in the present study. In 7177, Ramóny Cajal and lorente de Nó The rats were put in separate cages, each used Gogi's technique in studying the contained one male and one female rat. cellular architecture of hippocampal They were kept for mating for 09 hours. formation(1179). The next day, female rats were examined for vaginal plug of semen. The first day of In 7131, Papez described his circuit and the conception was determined if the vaginal hippocampus was one of the structures plug is positive and considered to be integrated in(70). He suggested that it might E7.Pregnant female rats were kept separate 114 Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat MJMR, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2024, pages (224-225). Kamel et al., in cages and were followed up for development would be following up to pregnancy dating. From E71-E07, two or reach the final appearance.It is formed of more pregnant rats were taken for each day two major parts, the cornuammonis and the of age, and then sacrificed by decapitation. dentate gyrus. Both structures are curved; The abdomen and the uterus were opened the terminal part of cornuammonis is up, and then the embryos were removed, directed into the concavity of dentate gyrus; heads were separated and injected by Bouin (the hilum). fixative through making pores at the margin of skull cap.From postnatal ages P7, P1, The coruammonis appears as a column of P79, P07, P32 and >P12 (adult), three rats less densely packed, randomly oriented were taken for each age and sacrificed by cells lie adjacent to the tightly packed, decapitation. The skulls were opened and radially oriented neuro-epithelium. The the brains were extracted for removal of subfields of cornuammonisare difficult to hippocampus in the following steps: be identified. The boundary between the 7) In order to expose the hippocampus we subiculum and conruammonis is not recog- need to remove the cerebral cortex nizable. The cells of cornuammonis appear covering it. The first incision is at the end small with small deeply pigmented nuclei. of the hemisphere; the incision should be about 2.1mm deep for adult mouse that The dentate gyrus starts to appear as a not to hurt the hippocampus while to collection of young nerve cells migrating expose it (the incision depth is reduced to from the neuro-epithelium near the 2.0 mm in one day old rat). The 0nd outgrowth of the chorid plexus to a subpial incision is about 7.8-0mm in front of the area in the concavity formed by the neuro- first one, this incision we cut into the epithelium of cornuammonis at its ventral lateral ventricle, both of the incisions go end. to the ventral of the brain and meet there. This piece of cortex is free, after pulling it On E71, the coruammonis is seen to make up, we will see the hippocampus. more arching towards the lateral ventricle 0) On the other side of the brain, both the and temporal cortex, the stratum oriens and sides of the cortex are pulled up that stratum radiatum appear to be formed but covering the hippocampus along the they are thin. The cells appear small and ventricle. Now we can see the dorsal part rounded with deeply pigmented nuclei. of the hippocampus. 3) The rest of the hippocampus is The dentate gyrusarea appeared larger than separated from the cortex covering it the previous age. Cells of the dentate gyrus along the surface of the hippocampus are closely packed in a ball- like subpial towards the ventral part of the mass. The limbs are not formed yet. hippocampus. 9) The hippocampus picked out from the On E71, the cornuammonis appears as a brain. small C- shaped structure, bulging laterally, Either the head (E71-E07), or the towards the cavity of lateral ventricle, hippocampus (P7-adult), was kept in making two limbs, the prominent superior Bouin's fixative for 09 hours, and then limb is continuous with the cortex is called transferred to 721 neutral formalin. All CA7 and faint, uncompleted inferior limb specimens were embedded in paraffin. growing towards the hilum of dentate gyrus Serial sections (1 µm) were prepared in is called CA3. The fimbria rises below the the coronal plane for Haematoxylin and point of meeting between the two limbs of Eosin staining. CA. The hippocampal subfields are well apparent, from ventricular side outwards; Results neuro-epithelium, large sub-ependymal 2) Prenatal ages: (Fig. 2- 4) zone, stratum oriens, pyramidal layer and The hippocampus proper starts to appear by stratum radiatum. The thickness of neuro- the 71th day of intra-utrine life and its epithelium is apparently diminished than 115 Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat MJMR, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2024, pages (224-225). Kamel et al., the previous age with appearance of large layers than CA3, nuclei are vesicular. Cells sub-ependimal zone containing radially of CA3 are larger than CA7. The dentate oriented neuroblasts towards the Cornu gyrus appears as larger mass of cells with Ammonis. The sub-ependymal zone is starting formation of ectal limb of the present throughout the length of granular cell layer that appear superficial to hippocampus, larger towards the subiculum the dentate hilus, less dense with deep than towards Ammon's horn. The cells nuclei and their apical dendrites extending acquire the characteristic pyramidal towards the molecular layer. The remaining appearance starting by this age, with apical cells of the dentate gyrus below the hilus dendrites towards the stratum radiatum. are densely packed with deep nuclei. Cells of CA7 are small, forming more 116 Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat MJMR, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2024, pages (224-225). Kamel et al., On E71, the cornuammonisappears larger vesicular with prominent nucleoli. Cells of C- shaped structure. The CA3 part is CA3 are arranged from 3 to 8 layers, larger completed towards the dentate hilus. The in size with thicker apical dendrites. The subfields of CA could be seen with great dentate gyrus is formed of two limbs; the apparent change in thickness, the neuro- supra-pyramidal (ectal) limb, which appears epithelium layer is thin, sub-ependymal more developed; cells are arranged in layers layer is contracted, pyramidal layer is and larger than the newly formed infra- thickened and stratum radiatum is markedly pyramidal (endal) limb which appears as a enlarged. The dominant neurons in the collection of densely packed cells. The hippocampus proprius are the pyramidal chief cells of the dentate gyrus are the cells. The size and the density of these granular neurons and so, the 3 layers of neurons are variable throughout the CA. dentate gyrus are apparent in the supra- pyramidal cells show marked increase in pyramidal limb, the most superficial layer is apparent size than the previous age. Cells of the molecular layer; the next granule cell the pyramidal layer of CA7 arranged from layer in which granule cells are rounded 8 to 1 layers, with prominent apical with pale nuclei, and the polymorphic layer dendrites that extended to stratum radiatum that related to dentate gyrus hilum and and stratum lacunosum. The nuclei are characterized by presence of large Mossy 111 Prenatal and Postnatal Development of the Rat MJMR, Vol.