Development of the lateral and medial limbic cortices in the rat in relation to cortical phylogeny

Abstract

[ 3H]Thymidine autoradiography was used to investigate neurogenesis of the lateral limbic cortex and morphogenesis of the medial and lateral limbic cortices in adult and embryonic rat brains. Ontogenetic patterns in the limbic cortex are unique because some neurogenetic gradients are linked to those in neocortex, others are linked to those in paleocortex. These findings are related to hypotheses of cortical phylogeny. The experimental animals used for neurogenesis were the off-spring of pregnant females injected with [ 3H]thymidine on 2 consecutive days: Embryonic Day (E)13–E14, E14–E15, …E21–E22, respectively. On Postnatal Day (P)60, the proportion of neurons originating during 24-h periods were quantified at nine anteroposterior levels and one sagittal level. Similar to neocortex, deep cells are generated earlier than superficial cells throughout the lateral limbic cortex: layer VI mainly on E14–15, layer V on E15–E16, and layers IV-II on E16–E18. There is a ventral/older to dorsal/younger neurogenetic gradient between the ventral agranular insular, dorsal agranular insular, and gustatory cortical areas and between ventral and dorsal orbital areas beneath the frontal pole. Similar to paleocortex below the rhinal sulcus, limbic cortex in the rhinal sulcus has a “sandwich” gradient: the older posterior agranular insular area is sandwiched by anterior and posterior younger areas (ventral agranular insular and perirhinal). To study morphogenesis, pregnant females were given single injections of [ 3H]thymidine during gestation and embryos were removed in successive 24-h intervals (sequential-survival). Neurogenesis finishes first in ventral limbic areas, later in dorsal limbic areas, and latest in neocortical areas. The cortical plate in the region of the medial and lateral limbic cortices does not have a separate subplate layer as is found in the region of the neocortex. Instead, layer VI in the limbic cortices has unusually older cells that are generated simultaneously with subplate cells.