Summary
Fractionation of the cat cerebellum has revealed that the parallel fibers of the cerebellar cortex break into two types of fragments which can be recognized in thin sections and in suspensions of negatively stained material. Fragmented material correlates well with electron micrographs of parallel fibers in situ. Parallel fiber axons and their bulbous presynaptic expansions sediment mainly into two subfractions. One unique layer consists of the intersynaptic tubular pieces of parallel fiber axons. Another layer is enriched in the synaptic portions which make contact with Purkinje spines. The possible contaminants of these fractions are discussed. These fractions may permit analysis of the chemical organization of conducting vis à vis synaptic membranes from a known anatomical source.
This material was presented as a preliminary report at the Sixth Annual Meeting of the American Society for Cell Biology, November 1966, and is contained in J. Cell. Biol. 31, 52A, 1966.
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This investigation was supported by Mental Health Training Grant MH 8396 and P. H. S. Grant 5-R01-NB06783 from the National Institutes of Mental Health.
We would like to express our appreciation to Mrs. Paloma Larramendi and Mrs. Marta Cibavicius for their technical assistance.
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Johnston, N.L., Larramendi, L.M.H. The separation and identification of fractions of nonmyelinated axons from the cerebellum of the cat. Exp Brain Res 5, 326–340 (1968). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00235907
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00235907